Sarah Trone Garriott
Sarah Trone Garriott, a Democrat and Lutheran minister who has served in the Iowa Senate since 2021, challenges Republican incumbent Zach Nunn for Iowa's 3rd congressional district in 2026.
2026 Races & Market Forecast
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- Birthplace
- Minneapolis
- Education
- College of St. Scholastica (Bachelor of Arts in history)
Harvard Divinity School (Master of Theological Studies)
Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago (Master of Divinity)
Biography & Campaign Analysis
Background
Sarah Trone Garriott was born in Minneapolis. She earned a Bachelor of Arts in history from the College of St. Scholastica, and after completing her undergraduate degree she worked as a volunteer with AmeriCorps VISTA in New Mexico.
She also holds a Master of Theological Studies from Harvard Divinity School and a Master of Divinity from the Lutheran School of Theology at Chicago. Trone Garriott is married to William Garriott, a professor at Drake University, and they live in West Des Moines with their two sons.
Career
Sarah Trone Garriott is ordained in the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. She was a chaplain at Thomas Jefferson University Hospital in Philadelphia in 2004 and 2005 and at Lurie Children's Hospital in Chicago from 2005 to 2008, and she later served as a pastor at Lutheran churches in Bergton, Virginia, and Clive, Iowa. Since 2017 she has worked as coordinator of interfaith engagement at the Des Moines Area Religious Council.
Trone Garriott won an open Iowa Senate seat in the 22nd district in November 2020, after the retirement of Republican Charles Schneider, defeating Clive mayor Scott Cirksena with 51.1% of the vote.
Redistricting paired her with another Democratic incumbent, and in 2022 she ran in the newly drawn 14th district, where she defeated Senate president Jake Chapman by 51.5% to 48.5%. She was re-elected in 2024 over Republican Mark Hanson by 29 votes after a recount.
She served as Senate minority whip during the 90th General Assembly, serves on the Education Committee, and is ranking member of the Health and Human Services Committee.
2026 race
Iowa's 3rd congressional district is based in southwestern Iowa and includes the city of Des Moines. The incumbent is Republican Zach Nunn, who was re-elected with 51.8% of the vote in 2024.
Sarah Trone Garriott announced her candidacy on May 5, 2025, and was the only candidate in the Democratic primary, receiving 54,662 votes after Jennifer Konfrst, a former minority leader of the Iowa House, withdrew.
Her campaign has emphasized health care, including restoring federal Medicaid funding and extending premium subsidies under the Affordable Care Act. She faces Nunn in the general election on November 3, 2026.