Senator Joni Ernst from Iowa has announced her retirement from the US Senate when her term is up and Democrats are hoping to seize on the race.

But can they do it? I really hope not. In fact, what I hope we’ll see is a more MAGA-oriented candidate who can work with both this administration and future ones, assuming they happen.

Here’s the news via Roll Call:

Iowa Sen. Joni Ernst, the motorcycle-riding Republican who came to Congress more than a decade ago vowing to “make ’em squeal,” won’t run for reelection next year, giving Democrats an opening in a red-trending state.

“As our family ages and grows, it’s my time for me to give back to them. After a tremendous amount of prayer and reflection, I will not be seeking reelection in 2026,” Ernst said in a video posted Tuesday on her social media accounts. Her decision was first reported Friday by CBS News.

Ernst is the fourth Republican senator to decide against seeking reelection this cycle. In late June, North Carolina’s Thom Tillis declared that he would not seek a third term. Kentucky’s Mitch McConnell is leaving the chamber next year, while Alabama Sen. Tommy Tuberville is running for governor.

Ernst’s retirement provides an opportunity for Senate Democrats in an election cycle that was initially seen as highly favorable for Republicans. Democrats need to flip a net of four seats to win the majority next year.

Still, Iowa remains challenging terrain for Democrats. While Barack Obama carried the state in 2008 and 2012, Trump has since won it three straight times, including by 14 points last fall. State auditor and gubernatorial hopeful Rob Sand is now Democrats’ sole statewide officeholder, and no Iowa Democrat has won election to Congress since former Rep. Cindy Axne in 2020. A recent spate of upsets in legislative special elections, however, has given Iowa Democrats optimism about their 2026 chances.

As long as we run a good MAGA candidate, perhaps like our Vice President, then I think we’ll be okay. But if we run one like the former Lt. Gov of North Carolina, then goodbye Iowa.

In related news, Jerry Nadler is also not running for reelection, leaving a House district vacancy. Although I seriously doubt a Republican is going to win his district, but you never know until you spend a boat load of money and try:

Democratic Rep. Jerry Nadler made his impending retirement official in a Tuesday statement where he said it was “the right time to pass the torch to a new generation.”

The 78-year-old New Yorker, who has represented parts of Manhattan and Brooklyn in a 33-year House career, is stepping aside amid a broader thirst for generational change in the Democratic Party. Nadler, in an earlier interview with The New York Times, cited the tumultuous end of Joe Biden’s presidency in his decision to retire.

Good riddance Nadler.