Rep. Zach Nunn (R-IA), who narrowly flipped Iowa's only Democratic House seat red in 2022, has gained a challenger in the 2024 election.

Former Department of Agriculture official and veteran Lanon Baccam announced his candidacy for Iowa's 3rd Congressional District on Thursday, becoming the first Democrat to publicly challenge Nunn for a seat that he won by about 2,000 votes in the midterm elections.

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Baccam said in an announcement video that he is running for the House to bring the nation together.

"We can all sense and feel our country is incredibly polarized," Baccam said. "People are moving apart. And people are divided in their political camps. Nowhere is that more true than the U.S. Congress, and Zach Nunn is part of the problem."

"I'm ready to serve Iowans. Let's bring this country back together and rebuild our communities," Baccam continued.

Baccam is a veteran of the Iowa National Guard, where he served as a combat engineer in Afghanistan. He also worked in Iowa's state government and for several Iowa Democrats, and he served on President Joe Biden's campaign in 2020 as his deputy state director in Iowa. His most recent role was serving as deputy chief of staff and military veteran liaison for the USDA.

If he wins the primary, Baccam will battle Nunn in a swing district. Nunn narrowly defeated former Iowa Rep. Cindy Axne, who was the only Democratic congresswoman from Iowa. With Nunn's win, he turned Iowa's delegation completely Republican and left state Auditor Rob Sand as the only Democrat to hold statewide or national office in Iowa.

"The last race was decided by just a few votes per precinct. We can win, but only if you join us," Baccam said.

Baccam is endorsed by Sand and former Democratic Iowa Gov. Tom Vilsack and his wife, Christie.

"We have had the pleasure of knowing and working alongside Lanon for almost two decades, and we know that he is a deeply proud Iowan who will be a thoughtful, committed congressman for the 3rd district," the Vilsacks said in a statement via the Des Moines Register.

Sand said in a statement that he is "proud" to endorse Baccam, touting his over two decades of service for Iowa and for the country. The state auditor said Baccam is the best candidate to "deliver real results for Iowans" and take on Nunn in what he said would be "one of the most competitive races" in 2024.

"Throughout his decades of service, Lanon has shown his commitment to serving the people of Iowa, and he is exactly the leader we need in Congress," Sand said.

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Nunn's campaign released a statement "welcoming" Baccam "back to Iowa from DC."

"While he may want to be anointed the nominee by his powerful friends in DC, I suspect Iowans will have other ideas, and he’ll first have to survive a growing primary including other Democrats — Melissa Vine and Tracy Limon,” said Kendyl Parker, campaign manager for Nunn. “If he survives the primary, voters will have a clear choice between Zach — a thoughtful, independent and pragmatic representative for Iowans — and Lanon, a career Democrat political operative for Joe Biden and Hillary Clinton who will no doubt be a rubber stamp on their radical agenda he helped write.”