DES MOINES, IOWA — The Iowa House Minority Leader announced her bid for Iowa’s Third Congressional District on Thursday morning.

State Representative Jennifer Konfrst (D), District 32 from Windsor Heights, has been serving at the state level in the Iowa House for six years and is now aiming to get elected to federal office.

Konfrst says that she made her decision to officially run for Congress on Inauguration Day for President Trump. She has been in the Iowa House since 2019 and has been the Democratic party leader in that chamber since 2021.

She said politics isn’t something she thought she’d ever get into.

“This was not my plan to be a politician either. Right? Like, I just got into this in my 40s. And so it’s sort of hard for me to get used to the idea at all. But after seeing how much Washington and Iowa politics and policy really interact at the legislature, I’ve seen just how much more we need to do and work with at the federal level,” said Konfrst.

She also spoke about the people she serves at the state level and their needs, prompting her decision, “You know, I have a constituent who called and said that her job is being eliminated on April or on June 30th. And I said, is it federal funding? Or state? And she said, ‘I don’t know.’ And that is what so many people are facing is this uncertainty. And so the urgency about this really came about after, after January when I started seeing just how much was happening and how much chaos is going on. And really wanted to get out there and try to fight for folks like my mom and me, and my parents, and my kids.”

Konfrst is a professor in the School of Journalism and Mass Communication at Drake University in Des Moines. She is married with two children.

Konfrst joins State Senator Sarah Trone Garriott in the Democratic primary race for a chance to face incumbent Congressman Zach Nunn (R) in November 2026.

A spokesperson for Nunn released a statement following Konfrst’s announcement, saying, “Zach Nunn isn’t jockeying for headlines, he’s working across the aisle to deliver real results for Iowans. Whether it’s securing our southern border, cutting reckless government spending, or protecting benefits for our most vulnerable communities, he’s focused on service over politics. Ranked in the top 10 most bipartisan members of Congress, Zach Nunn consistently puts Iowa first.”

Watch Zach Fisher’s full interview with Rep. Konfrst below: