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Democratic Iowa State Rep. Josh Turek defended his attendance record after being called out by his opponent, Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson, R-Iowa, during a Tuesday night debate for the state’s open Senate seat.
Hinson remarked on Turek’s absences while responding to a question posed to both candidates about Iowa’s rising cancer rates.
“You have to show up to vote for things like pediatric cancer research, and I’ve invested in legislation to make sure that we’re redirecting those resources to get to where it needs to go to help get to the bottom of this cancer crisis,” Hinson said.
As Fox News Digital first uncovered, Turek missed 261 votes in Iowa’s state legislature from Jan. 12, 2026, through May 3, representing nearly 58% of the total votes during that time.
The debate’s moderator asked Turek directly why he missed the votes.
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Republican nominee for U.S. Senate Ashley Hinson, right, speaks during a televised debate with Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate Josh Turek at WHO 13, Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026, in Des Moines, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
“I have gone out there, and I have met with Iowans all over the state, all 99 counties, hundreds of public forums,” Turek responded.
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“Meanwhile, Ashley Hinson, since she’s decided to run for U.S. Senate, has not done one in-person town forum. Also, in my first three years in the legislature, [I had] more than a 90% attendance record,” Turek continued.
“I want to ask again, though, why did you miss those votes?” the moderator repeated.
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Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate Josh Turek speaks during a televised debate with Republican nominee for U.S. Senate Ashley Hinson at WHO 13, Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026, in Des Moines, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
“I’m out campaigning. I’m out meeting Iowans all over all 99 counties. I’ve done hundreds of in-person town halls. Meanwhile, Ashley Hinson, since she’s running for the U.S. Senate, has not done a single in-person town hall,” he said.
Hinson objected to the notion that she hasn’t done any town halls during the campaign cycle.
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“I’ve done more town halls than the percentage of time he showed up to work this year. 42% of the time is all Rep. Turek showed up to work this year. That’s two out of every five days of work,” Hinson said.
“Iowans, if you’re watching tonight, you should know if you don’t show up to work two out of five days, you’re not getting a promotion. You’re getting fired. I am proud of my bipartisan record working with both parties to get things across the finish line. I rank in the top 20% of bipartisan lawmakers in Congress and I have a 99% attendance record even while running a statewide campaign,” she concluded.
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Republican nominee for U.S. Senate Ashley Hinson speaks during a televised debate with Democratic nominee for U.S. Senate Josh Turek at WHO 13, Tuesday, Oct. 13, 2026, in Des Moines, Iowa. (AP Photo/Charlie Neibergall)
Turek, before the moderator moved on, chimed in, adding, “She also missed 193 votes.”
A spokesperson for the Hinson campaign clarified to Fox News Digital that the 193 votes Hinson missed accounted for her entire time in Congress, while the 261 votes Turek missed were in the 2026 legislative session alone.
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The Hinson campaign also disputed the idea that she hasn’t held any town halls.
“Since being elected to Congress, Ashley Hinson has held 47 in-person town halls and more than 30 telephone town halls — speaking directly to Iowans about the issues that matter most to them,” Billy Fuerst, the Hinson campaign communications director, told Fox News Digital.
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“Ashley has a 98.8% lifetime voting record while Josh Turek registered a 42% voting record in the State House this year. Ashley missed 16% (94 of 553) of committee amendment votes over the course of her congressional tenure, but has been present for all final passage votes (final passage votes include the amendment language) in her time on the Appropriations Committee — 70 total bills since 2021,” Fuerst concluded.
Rep. Turek and his campaign did not immediately respond to Fox News Digital for comment.
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Fox News Digital’s Leo Briceno contributed to this report.