Zach Wahls

Zach Wahls was born in Marshfield, Wisconsin. Wahls graduated from Iowa City West High School.[1] He earned a bachelor's degree in sustainability studies from the University of Iowa in 2014 and a master's degree in public affairs from Princeton University in 2018. Wahls' career experience includes co-founding Wahls Enterprises LLC and working as the vice president for community investment and development with GreenState Credit Union.[1][2]

Zach Wahls did not complete [the profile publisher]'s 2026 Candidate Connection survey.

blockquote{border-left:none !important;padding-left:2em;position:relative;color:#444;font-family:"Libre Franklin",Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif;font-size:16px;color:#202122;font-style:normal;}blockquote::before{content:open-quote;font-size:3em;line-height:0.1em;position:absolute;left:-10px;top:40px;color:#ccc}blockquote::after{content:close-quote;font-size:3em;line-height:0.1em;position:absolute;right:0;bottom:0;color:#ccc}

Campaign websiteWahls' campaign website stated the following:IssuesIf you elect me to the US Senate, I will stand up to the special interests to lower out-of-control costs and end out-of-control corruption. We must protect and expand Social Security, Medicare, and Medicaid, fearlessly defend our freedoms, and demand a government that works for us, not the political insiders. — ZACH WAHLSRaise Wages and Rebuild the Middle ClassHere’s the thing: American workers produce more per hour than at any point in history. And yet, in inflation-adjusted terms, the typical worker’s paycheck buys less today than it did fifty years ago. CEOs make hundreds of times what their workers earn. Shareholders pocket record profits. And the workers who made all of it possible are told to be grateful for what they’ve got.That is not a fair market outcome. That is a system that has been deliberately tilted, through decades of policy choices, to move money from the people who do the work to the people who own the company. And fixing it is going to require deliberate choices in the other direction.My plan to raise wages and rebuild Iowa’s middle class works from every direction: strengthening workers’ power to negotiate, making sure that Iowa families keep more of what they earn, and ensuring that the workers who built these companies actually own a piece of them.I will fight to:Pass the PRO Act to restore workers’ right to organize and bargain collectively without fear of retaliation or intimidation. Unions are the single most effective tool workers have ever had to raise wages — not just for their own members, but for everyone in the communities where they work.Raise the federal minimum wage — the floor has been frozen at $7.25 an hour since 2009, the longest stretch in history. That is a policy choice, and it is a bad one. We should raise it to at least $15, then index it to inflation, so it never falls this far behind again.Guarantee paid family and medical leave for every worker. No Iowan should have to choose between keeping their job and caring for a newborn or a sick parent. The United States is one of the only developed countries in the world that doesn’t guarantee this. That has to change.Crack down on wage theft, which costs American workers more each year than all property crimes combined, and which falls hardest on the workers with the least power to fight back.End federal road swaps that let contractors cheat Iowa construction workers out of prevailing wages on public infrastructure projects that Iowa taxpayers are funding.I will fight to ensure that workers share in the productivity gains they create. American workers’ productivity has soared while their wages have stagnated, and the difference has flowed to executives and shareholders. That is not how a fair economy works. I will fight to restore the fundamental bargain: when the company does well because of its workers, the workers do well too.Pass the American Ownership and Resilience Act, bipartisan legislation that makes it easier for Iowa workers to buy the companies they’ve spent their careers building. Right now, over 30 percent of U.S. corporate stock is owned by foreign investors — and as Iowa’s baby boom generation of business owners retires, a historic wave of company sales is coming.This legislation would channel those sales toward the employees who know those businesses best, rather than to Wall Street or foreign buyers. Employee-owned companies are more productive, more resilient, pay higher wages, and stay rooted in their communities.The workers of Iowa built this economy. They deserve to share in what they’ve built. That means a paycheck that keeps up, a stake in the companies that depend on their labor, and a tax code and a government that works for them. I will fight for all of it. Read my full Iowans Over Insiders: An Economy that Works for Iowans plan.Clean up government corruptionThere’s a reason costs keep going up while Iowans’ paychecks are flat. There’s a reason families are struggling more than ever to afford prescription drugs, pay their mortgages, and put food on the table. And there’s a reason politicians aren’t doing a damn thing about it.The system is rigged by design, and we have to end it. Corporations and billionaires figured out a long time ago that it’s a lot cheaper to buy a politician than to compete in a fair marketplace. Elon Musk spent over $291 million in the 2024 elections, and his net worth has increased by $579 billion since then. The billionaires buy the politicians, the politicians write the rules, and hardworking Iowans pay the price.Since I was first elected to the Iowa State Senate in 2018, I have fought to protect my constituents against that system. I’m running for the U.S. Senate because Iowa deserves a Senator who works for Iowans, not insiders, and because the corruption in Washington is costing Iowa families real money.My anti-corruption plan — Iowans Over Insiders: End the Rigged System — takes direct aim at the rigged system with concrete reforms to make sure our government works for us, not the insiders, the wealthy, and the well-connected. I’ve made these promises to clean up Washington:Enact 12-year term limits for Congress. Rotating the crops is good for the soil, and you’d better believe it’s good for our politicians too.Ban politicians from trading individual stocks. Neither me, nor my family, nor my staff will own, buy, or sell individual stocks while I serve in office. I’ll pass legislation to hold every member of Congress to that same standard.Pass campaign finance reform and overturn Citizens United. Unlimited dark money has been a scourge on our politics and led to politicians who pay more attention to their corporate donors than their constituents. Strengthen ethics rules and close the revolving door between Congress and K Street. Ban members of Congress from becoming lobbyists immediately after leaving office.Require full financial transparency for federal candidates and office holders. Iowans deserve to know their elected officials are working for them, not enriching themselves while in office.Ban members of Congress, their staff, and any government official with a security clearance from betting on predictive markets. No one should be getting rich using insider information – especially when it comes to our vital national security.Keep the Promise: Protect Social SecurityMore than 680,000 Iowans have earned their Social Security benefits. They paid into this system their whole working lives. It’s not a handout — it’s a promise. And right now, that promise is under attack. DOGE has taken a chainsaw to the Social Security Administration. Wait times are up. Offices are understaffed. Payments are at risk. Social Security isn’t broken. It’s under attack. And I’ll fight like hell to defend it.The Keep the Promise Act:Scrap the cap. Right now, wealthy Americans stop paying Social Security taxes after their first $160,000 in earnings. Someone making $50,000 pays on every dollar. That’s not fair. End that loophole and use the revenue to extend Social Security’s solvency for generations.Reverse the DOGE cuts on day one. Restore the Social Security Administration’s budget so your benefits are on time, fully paid, and offices are fully staffed.Require a full-time Social Security commissioner whose only job is making sure your benefits are paid on time — not someone moonlighting across multiple agencies.No benefit cuts. No raising the retirement age. Iowans worked their whole lives to earn these benefits. We are not moving the finish line.Strengthen Iowa agriculture and rural communitiesIowa’s farmers and rural communities are the backbone of our state, but they’re facing unprecedented challenges from corporate consolidation and failed leadership. I’ll fight for policies that strengthen family farming and revitalize rural economies:Support family farms:End the tariff chaos devastating Iowa farmers and costing families.Fight for fair trade policies that help Iowa farmers compete globally.Break up agribusiness monopolies that squeeze farmers on costs and prices.Strengthen crop insurance and support beginning farmer programs.Revitalize rural economies:Invest in rural broadband so every community can compete in the digital economy.Support renewable energy development to create good-paying rural jobs.Stop Medicare and Medicaid cuts that force rural hospitals to close.Lower healthcare costs and expand accessHealthcare costs are crushing Iowa families while rural hospitals close and mental health services disappear. I’ll fight to lower costs and ensure every Iowan can get quality, affordable healthcare:Lower the Medicare eligibility age to 55.Strengthen the Affordable Care Act to lower premiums and out-of-pocket costs.Take on Big Pharma to lower prescription drug costs.Make major investments in mental health services, especially in rural communities.Break Up Monopolies and Restore Real CompetitionIowa ranked dead last in economic activity in 2025. The reason is not that Iowans stopped working hard. The reason is that a handful of giant corporations gobbled up the competition in agriculture, in meatpacking, in healthcare, in housing, and then used their market power to raise prices, cut wages, and squeeze out the small businesses that used to be the backbone of Iowa’s economy.Last fall, at a community roundtable in Atlantic, I heard about what this looks like in real life. The price of a new fire engine has more than tripled in a decade — from roughly $300,000 to over $1 million today, not because of inflation, but because a private equity firm systematically bought up competitors, closed plants, and now controls a third of the specialty vehicle market. Fire departments across Iowa are waiting years for trucks they can barely afford, and property taxpayers are footing the bill. That is not a market outcome. That’s monopoly power at work. And it shows up everywhere, in what Iowa farmers get paid for their grain, in what Iowa families pay for health insurance, in what Iowa small businesses pay to fix their equipment.I will fight to:Enforce antitrust laws aggressively. The federal government has looked the other way for decades while corporations bought up competitors, raised prices, and eliminated competition. From Ticketmaster to firetruck manufacturing, we’ve all been getting screwed. That ends now.Break up monopolies in meatpacking, agriculture, healthcare, and housing that are driving up costs for Iowa families and squeezing out the small businesses and family farms that made Iowa’s economy strong.Pass right to repair legislation so Iowa farmers and small business owners can fix their own equipment without paying a dealer’s ransom to the same manufacturer who sold it to them.Ban surveillance pricing at the grocery store. Iowans are already getting squeezed at the checkout, and the last thing they need is big retailers using personal data to quietly jack up the price on the shelf just for them based on their shopping habits, their neighborhood, or what the algorithm thinks they’ll pay. I introduced legislation in the Iowa Senate to ban this practice, and I will bring that fight to Washington. We must act now to protect Iowa consumers before this predatory practice becomes the norm.Support small business access to capital, especially in rural communities where banks have consolidated and credit has dried up.Competition is what makes capitalism work for working people. Right now, we don’t have competition, we have captured markets. I will fight to change that. Read my full Iowans Over Insiders: An Economy that Works for Iowans plan.Support Iowa familiesChloe and I pay more for our son’s daycare than we do for our mortgage. We are not alone. The cost of child care increased 263% between 1990 and 2024. For many Iowa families, childcare is now the single largest household expense — bigger than rent, bigger than groceries, bigger than a car payment. And unlike a mortgage, childcare doesn’t build equity.That math doesn’t add up for a lot of Iowa families. Many parents, especially moms, are being forced to leave the workforce entirely because the cost of childcare wipes out the income from a second job. That tradeoff has long-term implications for lifetime earnings, and pulls qualified workers out of the labor market. Other families are stretching budgets past the breaking point. Two thirds of families with children under 18 are living paycheck to paycheck. Meanwhile, childcare workers doing this critical work are among the most undercompensated people in our entire economy.This is not a personal failing. It is a policy failure. And I will fix it.I will fight to:Make major federal investments to bring down the cost of childcare for Iowa families — so that parents can afford to work, children get quality care, and providers can afford to stay in business.Expand access to high-quality pre-K for every Iowa child, regardless of their zip code or their parents’ income. The evidence is overwhelming: investments in early childhood education pay dividends for decades.Increase pay for childcare workers, some of the most undervalued workers in our economy, who are responsible for the development of our youngest Iowans.Guarantee paid family and medical leave for every worker. No Iowan should have to choose between keeping their job and caring for a newborn or a sick parent. The United States is one of the only developed countries in the world that doesn’t guarantee this. That has to change.Support first-time homebuyers through expanded access to down payment assistance, favorable financing, and protections against the predatory practices that have pushed so many Iowans out of the market.Crack down on algorithmic rent price-fixing. Corporate landlords have been using platforms like RealPage to coordinate rent increases across markets driving up costs for Iowa renters the same way surveillance pricing drives up costs at the grocery store. If it’s illegal for companies to fix prices in a back room, it should be illegal to do it through an algorithm.Protect manufactured and mobile home residents. Over half of Iowa’s mobile home parks are owned by large, out-of-state investment firms. When private equity buys the park and raises the lot rent, they have nowhere to go. I fought for these families in the Iowa Senate, and I will fight for them in Washington including passing federal protections and a right of first refusal so residents have the chance to purchase their community before it gets sold out from under them.Access to quality child care shouldn’t just be for the wealthy. Owning a home is not a luxury. I will fight to keep Iowa an affordable place to grow and raise a family. Read my full Iowans Over Insiders: An Economy the Works for Iowans plan.Protect Iowans’ freedomsIowa Republicans have enacted one of the most severe abortion bans in the country and we’ve seen efforts across the country to undermine our democracy. I’ll defend your fundamental rights:Codify reproductive rights and restore abortion access.Protect access to contraception and IVF.Defend the right to marry who you love.Defend your rights to free speech and peaceful protest.Ensure all Americans have access to vote and our elections are secure. Uphold a non-partisan and ethical judicial system.Promote proper regulation of technology and how our personal data is used.Secure the border and fix our broken immigration systemOur immigration system is broken and the border needs to be secured. For decades, politicians like Joni Ernst have failed to fix this mess because it benefits the people who donate to their campaigns—businesses that profit from cheap, exploitable labor while Iowa workers get screwed. I supported the bipartisan Border Act of 2024 that would have actually secured our border. We can finally solve this problem if we:Secure the border – Hire thousands more border patrol agents and immigration judges.Reform the asylum process – Reduce backlogs and ensure legitimate asylum seekers get fair hearings quickly.Create earned legal status – For people who’ve been here for years, are working, and haven’t committed crimes.Hold employers accountable – Real E-Verify enforcement that protects hard-working Iowans from wage theft.Keep Iowans safe – Deport noncitizens who are a threat to public safety.— Zach Wahls' campaign website (April 25, 2026)Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.

Zach Wahls did not complete [the profile publisher]'s 2022 Candidate Connection survey.

.survey-result {padding:10px;}

p.survey-question {font-weight:bold;}

p.survey-response {margin-left:10px;}

p.survey-response {white-space: pre-line;}

div.survey-scrollbox { height:400px; overflow:scroll; margin:20px; padding:10px; border:1px solid gray; }

What would be your top three priorities, if elected?

After knocking thousands of doors, I can say the three top issues facing Iowans are health care, education, and our economy. Health care: reverse Medicaid privatization, reform our mental health system, and fix our individual market. Education: fully fund K12 and reverse the $100M+ cuts to our Regents' schools. Economy: raise wages, slow the rising cost of living, and reinstate workers' rights.

What areas of public policy are you personally passionate about?

I'm especially passionate about health care policy. My mother Terry was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis when I was only eight years old. I experienced firsthand the challenges of a family dealing with a chronic autoimmune disease and how that was made more difficult by the fact that I had lesbian parents. Doctors treated families like mine differently. As a result of my personal experience, I am focused on bringing a compassionate, clear-eyed perspective to addressing the health care challenges facing Iowa.

Who do you look up to? Whose example would you like to follow, and why?

Senator Tom Harkin -- Iowa's longtime Democratic U.S. Senator -- is a hero and mentor of mine. He authored the Americans with Disabilities Act, which wound up playing a pivotal role in my life when my mother Terry found herself in a wheelchair because of her MS. Senator Harkin was an unrelenting champion for the underserved, disabled, underprivileged, and anyone who needed help. He's my role model for public service.

Is there a book, essay, film, or something else you would recommend to someone who wants to understand your political philosophy?

I'm in the somewhat unusual position of having written a book at a young age ? "My Two Moms: Lessons of Love, Strength, and What Makes a Family" -- which would probably be a good place to start. Politically, I align closely with President Barack Obama, so his book "Audacity of Hope" would also provide good insight to my values and worldview. I've also got an awful lot of information on my website -- www.zachwahlsforiowa.com -- discussing how I think about policy. (And I wrote it all myself, which I understand is relatively rare!)

What characteristics or principles are most important for an elected official?

I'm a first-time candidate, so you should probably check back after I've become an elected official! From a citizen's point of view, I really want elected officials who are dedicated to solving problems. That will involve a willingness to do the work, the work across the aisle if necessary, and to understand and think creatively about complex problems. We need people in government who are committed to making government work for the many, not the few.

What qualities do you possess that you believe would make you a successful officeholder?

There are two key aspects: my values and my experience. When it comes to my values, I do my best to bring the values I learned in the Boy Scouts growing up to everything I do. I don't always succeed, but I always know which direction my moral compass is pointing. I love learning, almost regardless of the subject, and understanding how things work, which is really important for legislators. For my experience, I'm someone who learned at an early age, growing up with lesbian parents, what it feels like to be different and excluded and targeted because of the kind of family you're a part of. We need politicians who understand why it's important to bring people together instead of pushing them apart. I've also been a successful advocate for LGBTQ rights at both the state and federal levels, and I learned a lot about campaigning, leading, and working together to get things done.

What do you believe are the core responsibilities for someone elected to this office?

Our politics are currently in a difficult place right now — we can all agree on that, regardless of your party. A lot of people feel frustrated or angry or scared or all three. So I think it's critical that we have elected officials who approach this responsibility with compassion, and an understand that we may not see everything eye-to-eye, but that we don't have to mean about it or bully people about it. And I believe it's my responsibility to make sure that the people of Senate District 37 know that I will fight for you no matter who you are, what your family looks like, or where you come from. I will always listen to you no matter what.

What legacy would you like to leave?

I'm only twenty-seven so I don't spend a lot of time thinking about legacy. Generally speaking, I am very interested in figuring out how we start restoring trust in government. Today, only 18% of Americans trust our government to do the right thing most of the time. That's down from 73% in 1958. We've got to do better.

What is the first historical event that happened in your lifetime that you remember? How old were you at the time?

I remember the 2000 presidential election pretty clearly and being confused about how a person who received fewer votes than the other person could win. I was nine years old at the time. I would never have guessed that it would happen again only sixteen years later.

What was your very first job? How long did you have it?

My mother Terry told me at an early age that if I wanted extra spending money, I'd have to work for it. So when I was ten or eleven, I recruited my best friend to launch J&W Home Care (the first letters of our last names) a full-service home services company. We started off helping people with chores around the house and as we got older, we did thing like snow blowing and lawn mowing. When we got to high school, we also spent time working as lifeguards at the local pool during the summers. I'm still a small business owner today, although now I work in partnership with my sister to design, manufacture, and sell premium playing cards.

What happened on your most awkward date?

This is a true story. January 2011, I messaged a girl on okCupid. A few weeks later, after a video of my speech to the Iowa Legislature about growing up with lesbian parents went viral, I heard back. She was interested in meeting up, but she was overseas. We stayed in touch here and there while she was abroad. She got back in the summer. We tried to connect but missed each other a few times. One night, she messages me on FB to ask if I'm working. I was free. She was too, but she was just hanging out at her parents' house. So our first date - and our first time actually meeting in person - wound up just being hanging out with her family at her parents' house. Which was fine - she has an awesome family - but it was definitely awkward as all get out.

What is your favorite holiday? Why?

Independence Day is probably my favorite. I really enjoy fireworks, I love grilling out, and spending time with friends. Coralville, the largest city in my district, also has "Fourth Fest" which is a big festival celebrating Independence Day. It's a ton of fun.

What is your favorite book? Why?

My favorite fiction book is Sirens of Titan by Kurt Vonnegut Jr. KVJ was just an exceptional storyteller and had this incredible way of making an incredibly complex plot seem so approachable and easy to read. I re-read it every other year or so, and every time I read it again, I find new things I appreciate about it.

My favorite non-fiction book is The Big Short by Michael Lewis. The global financial crisis of 2007-2008 was unfolding while I was in high school taking AP Economics, so I've always been morbidly fascinated with it. The Big Short helped me understand several layers of complexity I couldn't grasp when I was younger. It's funny, it's bleak, and it provides a powerful insight into a crisis that has influenced politics around the world the last ten years and will continue to do so for at least another ten.

If you could be any fictional character, who would you want to be?

Someone who could fly. I wanted to be a pilot when I was younger, and to this day, I always try to get a window seat -- despite being 6'5" -- because I love those first few moments during takeoff when you leave the runway and then poke up over the clouds.

What is your favorite thing in your home or apartment? Why?

My girlfriend and I just purchased a new couch that she had been wanting to buy for months. It's blue, velvet, and the exact right blend of firm and cushy. Second favorite thing is probably our bookcases, which house a large collection of our favorite books.

What was the last song that got stuck in your head?

The theme song of "Space Jam" from the movie. I think it's by Quad City DJs.

What is something that has been a struggle in your life?

When my mom Terry was diagnosed with MS, I was only eight years old. I didn't really understand what her diagnosis meant. The only thing I understood was that she was getting weaker and weaker, and the person who had been my Superwoman growing up was in a wheelchair. It was scary. I had to grow up in a hurry to help take care of her and to assume a lot more responsibility around the house. And the whole time, my mom never let me forget that we were the lucky ones because she had world-class health insurance and was able to access the best treatment money could buy without any trouble. Today, she's doing much, much better, which is incredible. But I'll never forget what life was like at those darkest moments.

Every state besides Nebraska has two legislative chambers. What do you consider the most important differences between the legislative chambers in your state?

Good question. As a first-time candidate, I'm not really sure yet!

Do you believe that it’s beneficial for state legislators to have previous experience in government or politics?

It really depends on the kind of experience. Senator Bob Dvorsky, who I am hoping to succeed had a distinguished 32-year career in the state legislature, making deals and serving the people of his district. Not everybody does as good of a job. He's definitely one of my role models.

What do you perceive to be your state’s greatest challenges over the next decade?

Addressing our state's water quality is going to be a huge issue, as it affects just about everyone in our state. We've taken some steps in the right direction, but we have to do a lot more. Over the next several decades, the big question is how does our state ? historically, a rural state ? grow in a sustainable way that balances urbanization with our rural heritage. Many of our counties are experiencing depopulation, which could have a devastating long term impact if we can't get our state growing the right way.

What do you believe is the ideal relationship between the governor and the state legislature?

They have to be partners in serving the people. There has to be a lot of communication, a lot of mutual respect and trust. And there has to be a shared vision for the future of our state that transcends partisan lines. What kind of people do we want to be? What role does government play in that? These are big questions, and if the legislature and governor disagree, it's going to be hard to work together.

Do you believe it’s beneficial to build relationships with other legislators? Please explain your answer.

My understanding is that relationship-building among legislators is incredibly important, especially because many of the bills that are passed have little to do with partisan affiliation and everything to do with solving public problems. On some of the more partisan issues, though, relationships are only going to do so much. More than anything else, I think we have to change the tone of our politics. I'm not sure if relationships among legislators is the way that changes, though.

What process do you favor for redistricting?

Iowa's independent commission for drawing districts seems to be working quite well for us so far.

If you are not a current legislator, are there certain committees that you would want to be a part of?

I'm hoping to serve on Human Services, Government Oversight, Appropriations, and Agriculture, and maybe on Education as well, depending on how many committees I can join.

If you are not currently a member