The Steady State, a nonpartisan group of former national security officials, filed a complaint Friday, asking the US Office of Special Counsel to investigate whether Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth violated the Hatch Act by headlining a ticketed campaign fundraiser for US Rep Zach Nunn at the Iowa State Fair on Aug. 17.
The event benefited a joint fundraising committee splitting proceeds among Nunn’s campaign, his leadership PAC, and the National Republican Congressional Committee. Tickets ran from $26 to $3,500, with the top tiers including a VIP donor reception.
From the stage, Hegseth told the crowd, “The biggest job I have is to ensure my department is properly funded. … We need those reinforcements in Washington, DC We need him [Zach Nunn] to be there.”
He added, “According to the lawyers, I’m only here in a personal capacity today.”
Iowa Starting Line reported that the event appeared to run afoul of both the Hatch Act and the US Department of Defense’s own rules. In the DOD’s February 2026 political activity guidance for Senate-confirmed officials like Hegseth, it states plainly that they are “prohibited from… organizing a political fundraiser or speaking at a fundraiser.” Any official remarks they give at a partisan event, the guidance says, “should be limited to DoW issues,” and officials “must refrain from advocating for or against a candidate for partisan political office, or commenting on any campaign related issues.”
The Washington Post reported Hegseth used taxpayer-funded military aircraft for the trip. The complaint asks OSC to determine whether the Treasury was reimbursed, and by whom, and to preserve flight and trip records before they’re purged on routine accounting cycles.
Iowa Starting Line sent the Department of Defense questions related to his conduct and the extent to which it follows the law. The DOD did not respond to the question, but a department spokesperson sent a statement included here in full:
“The Department of War, including Secretary Hegseth, respects and follows the law, including those involving government ethics.”
On July 8, OSC closed a separate Steady State complaint over a similar event Hegseth attended in Kentucky. The group’s new filing argues the Iowa record is different because Hegseth invoked his title and the Pentagon’s budget directly.
Richard Painter, a University of Minnesota law professor who served as chief White House ethics lawyer under President George W. Bush, told The Gazette the Iowa appearance “departs from the Defense Department guidelines” and that past secretaries “generally did not campaign” this way.
Nunn faces Democratic state Sen. Sarah Trone Garriott in the Nov. 3 general election.
