Chris Jones

Chris Jones (Democratic Party) is running for election for Iowa Secretary of Agriculture. He is on the ballot in the general election on November 3, 2026. He advanced from the Democratic primary on June 2, 2026.

Who are you? Tell us about yourself.

A leading advocate for environmental justice in Iowa, Chris Jones has studied the state’s water quality for decades. At the University of Iowa, he worked as a research engineer, studying contaminant hydrology in agricultural landscapes. Prior to that he worked for the Des Moines Water Works and the Iowa Soybean Association. He has a PhD in analytical chemistry from Montana State University and a BA in Chemistry and Biology from Simpson College in Indianola.

In 2023, Chris published The Swine Republic: Struggles With the Truth About Agriculture and Water Quality, which was selected by the Library of Congress as Iowa’s representative in the 2024 National Book Festival. He continues to write about water quality and related issues on Substack.

Please list below 3 key messages of your campaign. What are the main points you want voters to remember about your goals for your time in office?

I want my campaign to be a referendum on the condition of Iowa's water. We currently have some of the most polluted water in the country, and the 2nd highest cancer rate in the country.

We need government policies that help farmers to transition to low input and low polluting systems. And we need regulations for those who continue the high input high polluting systems. An all voluntary regulation system is no longer viable for Iowa.

Under our current system Iowa has the 2nd highest farm bankruptcies in the nation, while massive agribusiness corporations make record profits, and leave Iowans w/ polluted water and rising cancer rates.Despite having the best farmland in the world, Iowa still imports almost all of our food from out of state.

We need government policies that help farmers transition from industrial agriculture to sustainable and regenerative practices that also provide healthly, locally grown fruit, vegetables and meat to Iowans in our restaurants, grocery stores, and schools.The current industrial agricultural system of the past several decades has been a disaster for rural and small town Iowa.

By diversifying our farming system and bringing back small scale food and meat processing we can help revitalize rural and small towns across Iowa.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

Despite the millions of tax dollars spent on conservation, there are almost one million Iowans currently drinking water that has rates of nitrate at levels known to increase the risks for cancer and other major health issues.

We cannot keep spending millions of taxpayer dollars on band aids that only serve to entrench the current high polluting agriculture system.

A vote for Chris Jones is a vote for clean water.