Iowa Farmers Union

10/21/2026

Family farmers already pay property tax on every acre. Rural schools, hospitals, and main streets are already stretched thin. Amendment 1 would make sure that when Iowa’s budget gets tight, the wealthiest few are protected and the rest of us carry more of the load. A no vote is a vote for fairness for family farms and rural communities.

Featured below are IFU Members Matt Russell, Gill Gillespie, Larry Harris, and Denise O'Brien.

Paid for by Iowa Farmers Union EF Vote NO Committee

https://iowafarmersunion.org/voteno-amendment-1/

10/21/2026

Early voting is underway in Iowa, and Election Day is Nov. 3. Do you know your rights at the polls?

This Thursday at 12:30 p.m. CT, join Iowa Farmers Union and Sarah Dietch of Iowa Citizens for Community Improvement for a conversation about election protection: what every Iowan needs to know about early voting, absentee ballots and voting on Election Day, and where to turn if something goes wrong.

Sarah is an Iowa native and former senior official at USDA who has supported election administrators around the world. She’s now helping build a nonpartisan network to make sure every eligible Iowan can vote and every vote is counted.

Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_4CBFvNEsTeSwsoG7UuojLg

10/20/2026

USDA announced $8 billion in diesel fuel aid for farmers this week, two weeks before the election. IFU President Aaron Lehman says farmers never should have been put in this position in the first place.

“Farmers have needed help for months because the policies pursued by the Trump administration, implemented by USDA, and supported by Republican members of Congress have led to ridiculously high prices for diesel and fertilizer.”

Real solutions mean ending the war without sacrificing farmers’ bottom lines and breaking the monopoly stranglehold on agricultural inputs. A Band-Aid after the fact doesn’t fix the problem.

Read Aaron’s full statement: https://iowafarmersunion.org/iowa-farmers-union-president-responds-to-usda-diesel-fuel-aid/

10/19/2026

Early voting is open, and Amendment 1 is on your ballot.

It would write special protection for the highest earners and biggest corporations into Iowa’s Constitution. When the state needs to balance its budget, they’d be shielded from paying their share. Rural Iowans would pick up the slack through higher sales and property taxes, higher fees and cuts to the services our communities count on. Vote no on Amendment 1.

Paid for by Iowa Farmers Union EF Vote NO Committee

https://iowafarmersunion.org/voteno-amendment-1/

10/16/2026

Josh Manske, a corn and soybean farmer in southwest Iowa and IFU member, shared his perspective with Newsweek this week on the EPA’s proposed changes to the Renewable Fuel Standard and what they mean for his operation.

“You’re happy to see that there’s reallocation, but also I got wounded and now you’re giving me a Band-Aid,” Manske told Newsweek.

Read the story:

The EPA announcement praised by Hinson comes just three weeks before the midterms.

10/15/2026

10/15/2026

The vast majority of Iowa’s farmland is dedicated to growing commodity row crops. At Draco Hill Nature Farm in Cedar County, IFU member Suzan Erem is growing chestnuts, hazelnuts, Japanese walnuts, and elderberries alongside native tallgrass prairie, proof that the future of Iowa farmland is diversity.

This Sunday, she and Savanna Institute, which works with farmers to bring trees and perennial crops into Midwest agriculture, are opening the farm up for a Chestnut Festival. It’s a chance to taste and experience perennial agriculture.

RSVP by Friday, Oct. 16, for details: [email protected] or 319-480-4241

10/15/2026

Today at 12:30 p.m. CT, Will Westmoreland of Back Forty Action joins IFU to talk about what he’s hearing from farmers across the Midwest and what policy choices mean for rural communities. You can also meet Will in person Oct. 21 in Rock Island, Illinois, at “Getting Back on Track: Fixing the Farm Economy” with Iowa Farmers Union and Illinois Farmers Union.

Register for the Lunch & Learn: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_IE1myzjQRMGKMoiSCcP_Vw #/registration

10/14/2026

Costs are up, prices are down and farm bankruptcies rose 46% in a single year. Will Westmoreland has spent the past two years traveling across the country hearing what that looks like for farmers, ranchers and rural families.

This Thursday at 12:30 p.m. CT, Will joins IFU for a Lunch & Learn discussion on how policy choices are affecting farmers and rural communities in Iowa and across the Midwest. Will is the founder of Back Forty Action, a farmer and a nationally recognized digital creator focused on the issues facing rural America.

Register here: https://us02web.zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_IE1myzjQRMGKMoiSCcP_Vw #/registration

10/13/2026

Lana Zak reported on Iowa Farmers Union’s candidate endorsements for the November elections during CBS News America Decides 2026.

The endorsements include 18 Democrats and two Republicans. As a bipartisan organization, we back candidates based on where they stand on the issues family farmers face every day, from tariffs and rising costs to corporate consolidation in our food system.

Thanks to Lana and the CBS News team for covering this story.

Watch here: https://www.cbsnews.com/video/bipartisan-iowa-farmers-union-endorses-18-democrats-2-republicans-midterms/