Joshua Smith
Joshua Smith
Iowa Republican Senate nominee?
$28.0K
JUN 3, 2026Primary Election
Party selects its nominee.
Overview
Current rolePolitical activist
PartyLibertarian
Political ideologyTrump-aligned Republican
BackgroundPolitical activist
Notable personal detailsJoshua D. Smith is an American political activist who ran for the Libertarian Party’s presidential nomination in the 2024 election cycle and filed with the FEC as a Libertarian presidential candidate. He served on the Libertarian National Committee as an at-large member and was elected vice chair at the 2022 Libertarian National Convention, later resigning from the role in 2023. He has been associated with the Libertarian Party’s Mises Caucus and has been active in Libertarian Party organizational politics.
SourcesShowHide
Positions
Economy & Taxes
The candidate emphasizes cutting costs for Iowans, reducing taxpayer funding for foreign wars, and stopping what he describes as wasting taxpayers’ money. His campaign frames policies around liberty, prosperity, and lowering burdens on working-class Americans.
Healthcare
The candidate has made limited, issue-specific healthcare remarks focused on lowering costs and improving veterans’ mental-health services rather than laying out a comprehensive healthcare plan. Public materials and coverage emphasize cost concerns and support for expanded veteran mental-health resources but do not state a clear position on ACA, Medicare-for-All, a public option, or broad health‑policy reforms. Overall, the available statements are specific and narrow rather than a comprehensive ideological stance on healthcare.
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Abortion & Reproductive Rights
The candidate opposes broad abortion access and treats fetal life as having personhood, arguing for strict legal limits on abortion with very limited exceptions (e.g., when the mother’s life is at risk).
Public Safety & Guns
The candidate supports abolishing federal gun regulations and intends to author legislation to end federal gun laws; his public statements call for eliminating firearms regulations and emphasize broad Second Amendment rights. He frames expanded gun rights as a core part of his platform and opposes new federal gun restrictions.
News
Joshua Smith is being mentioned in the context of the 2026 midterm fight, where Democrats are trying to build momentum around issues like child care costs. A major advocacy group is planning a $50 million campaign to support Democrats, with caregiving expenses expected to be a key message in races such as Michigan. More broadly, recent state-level Democratic wins have fueled talk that the party could carry that momentum into the midterms.
New updates coming soon
We're monitoring and will update when new data impacts the race.
- Polls
- Endorsements
- Fundraising