21 candidates to appear at Political Soapbox at 2026 Iowa State Fair 2%
By Brian Smith1%
8/2/2026, 4:01:00 AM
Topics: Political Events, Campaign Schedules
BS Summary: This article contains 10 faulty reasoning types, including Biased Writer Voice, Optimism Bias, and False Dilemma, with Framing Effect as the most egregious example at 8.3% saturation with 58 hits. Analysis detected 263 faulty-reasoning hits from 700 analyzed words, generating a BS Score of 8.1% and a BS Rank of 2% (24,855 of 25,294 articles). This article is better (less manipulative) than 98.30% of the article peer group.
The Des Moines Register will host nearly two dozen candidates at the Iowa State Fair, allowing Iowans to hear directly from the people seeking to represent them — while enjoying the most popular event in the state.
The Des Moines Register Political Soapbox at the Iowa State Fair gives candidates 20 minutes on a stage along the fair's Grand Concourse.
As in the past, candidates will be able to decide how to use that time, including whether or not they take questions from the public.
Photos: The Des Moines Register Political Soapbox through the years
The Register offered timeslots during every day of the fair — Aug. 13 to 23 — except for Sundays.
The schedule this year will offer speeches on six of the fair's 11 days.
A small stage and seating area for the Soapbox will take over the front lawn of the Horner Service Center at the Iowa State Fair.
The building is located right off the Grand Concourse, to the west of the Administration Building and across Grand Avenue from the Grandstand.
In total, the Register invited 26 candidates seeking to represent Iowans in statewide or federal offices.
Any candidate who qualified for the ballot was invited.
In 2026, that includes candidates for:
U.S.
Senate
U.S.
House (all four districts)
Governor
Attorney general
Auditor of state
Secretary of agriculture
Secretary of state
Treasurer of state
As of July 30, 21 candidates accepted the invitation and have scheduled appearances at the Political Soapbox.
Any candidates who do not appear on the schedule either declined the invitation or did not sign up for a spot by 5 p.m. on July 31.
Additional appearances may be added before the start of the fair.
Updates will be posted to DesMoinesRegister.com/Soapbox.
Friday, Aug.
14
The first three candidates to take the Political Soapbox stage will appear on Friday, Aug.
14.
11:15 a.m.: Josh Turek, Democratic candidate for U.S.
Senate
Noon: Sarah Trone Garriott, Democratic candidate for Iowa's 3rd Congressional District
4:30 p.m.: Zach Lahn, Republican candidate for Iowa governor
Saturday, Aug.
15
The first Saturday of the Iowa State Fair will be the busiest day at the Political Soapbox with eight candidates scheduled to speak.
10:30 a.m.: John Norwood, Democratic candidate for treasurer
11:15 a.m.: Rob Sand, Democratic candidate for Iowa governor
Noon: Dave Dawson, Democratic candidate for Iowa's 4th Congressional District
1:30 p.m.: Thomas Laehn, Libertarian candidate for U.S.
Senate
2:15 p.m.: Michael Bridgford, independent candidate for Iowa's 1st Congressional District
3 p.m.: Dave Bushaw, independent candidate for Iowa's 2nd Congressional District
3:45 p.m.: Rick Stewart, Libertarian candidate for Iowa's 2nd Congressional District
4:30 p.m.: Ryan Peterman, Democratic candidate for secretary of state
Monday, Aug.
17
Veteran's Day at the Iowa State Fair will also feature a large slate of Republican candidates on the Political Soapbox stage.
1:30 p.m.: Joe Mitchell, Republican candidate for Iowa's 2nd Congressional District
2:15 p.m.: Zach Nunn, Republican candidate for Iowa's 3rd Congressional District
4:30 p.m.: Paul Pate, Republican candidate for secretary of state
5 p.m.: Mike Naig, Republican candidate for secretary of agriculture*
5:20 p.m.: Brenna Bird, Republican candidate for attorney general*
5:40 p.m.: Ashley Hinson, Republican candidate for U.S.
Senate*
* Note: The final three candidates on Aug. 17 will be allotted 10 minutes to address fairgoers.
This change was made at the request of the candidates.
Thursday, Aug.
20
After a few days off, the Soapbox will return for the final long weekend of the fair, starting on Thursday, Aug. 20, with one speech.
3 p.m.: Lindsay James, Democratic candidate for Iowa's 2nd Congressional District
Friday, Aug.
21
The Soapbox will also host one speech on Friday, Aug.
21.
1:30 p.m.: Nate Willems, Democratic candidate for attorney general
Saturday, Aug.
22
The final speeches of the 2026 Des Moines Register Political Soapbox take place on Saturday, Aug.
22.
Noon: Taylor Wettach, Democratic candidate for auditor
3 p.m.: Chris Jones, Democratic candidate for secretary of agriculture
Brian Smith is an audience strategist and senior editor at the Des Moines Register.
He's been the director of the Political Soapbox at the Iowa State Fair since 2019.
Contact him at bsmith@dmreg.com or 515-284-8214.
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