Christina Bohannan is taking another shot at unseating embattled US Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks, after losing by just 799 votes in 2024. 

Iowa law professor Christina Bohannan wants another rematch in 2026. She lost to US Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks in 2024 in a nationally-discussed squeaker that came down to just 799 votes. 

“Mariannette Miller-Meeks has had three terms in Congress–three chances to do right by the people of Iowa,” Bohannan said in her campaign announcement. “Instead, she has taken over $4 million from corporate special interests and done nothing but vote their way.”

The decision to run comes seven months after Bohannan’s loss to Miller-Meeks following a district-wide recount. The razor-thin margin marked a dramatic improvement from Bohannan’s 2022 performance, when she lost by more than 20,000 votes.

Iowa’s 1st Congressional District has emerged as a high-stakes battleground, with two of the last three elections decided by margins under 1,000 votes. Miller-Meeks first won the seat in 2020 by just six votes against Rita Hart, currently Iowa Democratic Party Chair. She then expanded her margin to seven percentage points in 2022 before nearly losing in 2024’s nail-biter finish. 

The district spans 20 counties across southeastern Iowa, with population centers in Scott and Johnson counties. It also encompasses a large population of rural voters and small towns. This geographic split has created a politically volatile mix that defies easy categorization, despite the district’s R+3 Cook Partisan Voter Index rating.

“This contest begins right where it ended – the biggest toss-up in the country,” Bohannan said in her announcement.

The 2024 results demonstrated remarkable ticket-splitting behavior among voters. While President Donald Trump carried the district by over 35,000 votes in the presidential race, Miller-Meeks won by fewer than 800 votes–a gap that political analysts say illustrates voters’ willingness to separate national politics from local. 

Bohannan’s political trajectory shows steady improvement across multiple campaign cycles. The University of Iowa law professor first entered politics by defeating a 20-year incumbent in the state House Democratic primary, then served one term in the state legislature before launching her first congressional bid in 2022.

Her 2024 campaign demonstrated significant organizational growth, outraising Miller-Meeks $6.9 million to $5.4 million.

In her announcement, she criticized Miller-Meeks for supporting “cost-increasing tariffs that will force Iowa families to pay $4,400 more in higher costs per year” and for joining “Elon Musk’s DOGE efforts to cut Social Security, veterans healthcare, education, and law enforcement resources.”

Despite her narrow victory, Miller-Meeks enters the 2026 cycle facing several political vulnerabilities. The 69-year-old ophthalmologist and 24-year Army veteran has built a formidable political operation and proven fundraising ability, but recent voting patterns suggest growing unease among constituents.

Her 2024 Republican primary performance showed unexpected weakness, winning just 56% against relatively unknown challenger David Pautsch–a surprisingly modest margin for a two-time incumbent. Miller-Meeks has tried to brand herself as the Trump candidate in each of her elections. But Pautsch called into question her allegiance to Trump. She has since posted several videos of her trying to get face time with Trump.

Miller-Meeks also faces criticism for recent congressional votes, particularly her support for budget reconciliation legislation that would cut approximately $700 billion from Medicaid over 10 years. The Congressional Budget Office projects such cuts would eliminate coverage for 8.6 million Americans, including roughly 67,000 people in Iowa’s 1st District.

The abortion issue continues to dog Miller-Meeks, following Iowa’s implementation of a six-week abortion ban in 2024. Bohannan attacked Miller-Meeks’ co-sponsorship of the “Life at Conception Act” in their previous race, and reproductive rights are likely to remain a central campaign theme.