DES MOINES, Iowa – State Senator Zach Nunn, R-Bondurant, announced that he is running for Congress in Iowa’s 3rd Congressional District on Tuesday. The Republican nomination to take on U.S. Rep. Cindy Axne, D-Iowa, should she run for re-election and not for another office, is now a three-way race. Nunn follows former State Rep. Mary Ann Hanusa, R-Council Bluffs, who was the first to announce in May, and Nicole Hasso of Johnston who announced last week.
Nunn represents Iowa Senate District 15 that encompasses eastern Polk County and Jasper County. He is serving his first term in the Iowa Senate after his election in 2018. Before that, he served two terms in the Iowa House of Representatives as House Majority Whip and Assistant Majority Leader from 2014-2018.
His entrance in this race means that there will be an open seat in Iowa Senate District 15 since he was up for re-election in 2022.
Nunn is a decorated battlefield veteran, who was deployed three times to operations in Iraq and Afghanistan flying 700-combat hours with the US Air Force. He was deployed stateside during the 2021 Iowa Legislative session. Nunn served on the White House’s National Security Council as Director of Cybersecurity and is the recipient of the National Intelligence Service Medallion for defense against foreign threats. He also served as legislative staff for U.S. Senator Chuck Grassley, worked as a military legislative affairs officer for a 4-Star General, and has taught as an adjunct professor of cybersecurity and national policy at Drake University.
An Altoona native, Nunn graduated with a B.A. in political science and international relations from Duke University. He also holds a master’s degree from the Air Command and Staff College.
Nunn and his wife, Kelly, own and operate a small business in Bondurant and live in Bondurant with their four children.
“This community raised Kelly and I, they had our back and we have theirs, which is why we take it personally when DC stops caring about the Heartland. And that’s why I’m running for Congress. Iowans will decide the future for our country,” he said in a campaign video.
“You trusted me to fight at the statehouse and we delivered time and again, passing the largest tax cut to help working-class Iowans keep more of their hard-earned dollars, protecting our constitutional rights and strengthening our family farms. We’ve got a battle ahead of us. Elites in DC are bent on picking winners and losers in America. I am a proven fighter for you on the battlefield and in our state capitol. Let’s get Iowans back to work by stopping the Democrats’ biggest tax hike in U.S. history. Let’s keep our neighborhoods safe and support our heroes in law enforcement, not defund the police. Let’s stop D.C. politicians from telling us how to act and big tech that muzzles our constitutional rights. This election is a call to action. And we’re all in this fight together,” Nunn added.
Watch his campaign video above.
