Republican Randy Feenstra Wins Election for Iowa Congress Seat Formerly Held by Steve King

A voter marks his ballot at a polling place in Dennis Wilkening's shed in Richland, Iowa, on Nov. 3, 2020. Mario Tama/Getty Images

The Republican Party will hold onto Iowa’s 4th Congressional District after Randy Feenstra defeated Democratic candidate J.D. Scholten.

Feenstra will replace the incumbent Republican Rep. Steve King (R-Iowa), who had served nine terms in Congress for the heavily Republican district in northwestern Iowa.

King, who had a long history of making racially charged comments, was ousted in June 2020 from the Republican ballot after members of his party supported Feenstra following a scandal after King asked when terms like “white nationalist” had become offensive.

The remarks, which resulted in bipartisan calls for his removal from Congress, also lost King his seats on committees. It made him an ineffective representative for his constituents and a problem for the Republican Party after Democrats repeatedly forced GOP leaders to answer for his comments.

Republicans supporting Feenstra included five members of the House GOP: Reps. Adam Kinzinger (R-Ill.), Paul Mitchell (R-Mich.), Steve Stivers (R-Ohio), Dusty Johnson (R-S.D.), and Will Hurd (R-Texas), who funded Feenstra’s campaign.

Speaking to Politico in May, Hurd said: “Steve King’s divisive and unacceptable rhetoric over the years prevents him from delivering results for Iowans.

“And it hurts the Republican Party at a time when we should be competing for votes in communities that Democrats like Joe Biden take for granted.”

Nick Bryan, a GOP operative who also opposed King’s inclusion in the Republican Party ballot, said that all segments of the party had come together in an effort to defeat King.

“And that’s something that’s never happened before,” Bryan said.

Early Wednesday Feenstra thanked his supporters for the election win on Nov. 3, writing in a post on Twitter: “Together, we delivered. Thank you.”