Young GOP Candidates Eye House Seats

Joe Mitchell, 29, is running for the U.S. House seat representing Iowa's second congressional district. He seeks to become part of the first generation of Gen Z Republicans to serve in Congress if he wins the race on Tuesday.

Mitchell holds the endorsement of President Trump. The district is considered a tossup as voters express dissatisfaction with the president and Democrats gain momentum in the race for control of Congress. Mitchell is one of very few Gen Z Republicans seeking House seats this election cycle.

Only Maxwell Frost, a 29-year-old Democrat from Florida, currently serves in the House as a Gen Z member. Two other candidates are expected to win seats on Tuesday. Melat Kiros, 29, is favored to win Colorado's first district. Michael Alfonso, 26, is expected to carry Wisconsin's seventh district, a heavily Republican seat.

Alfonso, a political newcomer, is married to the daughter of Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy. Duffy held the Wisconsin seat from 2011 to 2019. If elected, Alfonso will be the first person born in the 2000s to serve in Congress. He described his age as his greatest advantage in an interview with Wisconsin Public Radio earlier this month.

Mitchell runs on an anti-corruption platform that includes term limits for House members, capped at six terms, and a ban on congressional stock trading. He has rejected campaign donations from corporate PACs. He stated that Americans under 30 report high levels of concern for their economic wellbeing and distrust of institutions.

A report from the nonpartisan Future Caucus found that just 4% of congressional candidates nationwide this cycle were part of Gen Z. This generation was the least likely to advance past the primary. Data shows a majority of Gen Z candidates filed as Democrats, while under a third filed as Republicans. Another 16% did not associate with either major party.

Adam Pennings, executive director of Run Gen Z, said the organization works to build a bench of young conservatives. The group announced endorsements for more than 220 Gen Z and millennial conservatives in late October. This slate includes Mitchell, Alfonso, and Riley Owen, a 28-year-old Republican running in Utah's newly redrawn first congressional district.

Mitchell argues the future of the Republican Party is an America First party that asks how policies help the American people. He noted that the party's stance on the U.S. war with Iran has become a point of contention. Mitchell has not come out against the war, stating Iran cannot have a nuclear weapon, but cautioned against endless wars.