Democratic U.S. Senate nominee Josh Turek said this week that people who enter the country illegally should not face immediate deportation, drawing a sharp contrast with Republicans on one of the race's defining issues. Turek, an Obama-endorsed state lawmaker from Council Bluffs, is challenging Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson for the Senate seat being vacated by retiring Sen. Joni Ernst.
His comments came during an exchange with NBC News anchor Tom Llamas, according to Breitbart News, and included an inaccurate claim that three Iowa House Republicans back a bipartisan immigration bill.
What Turek told NBC News
Llamas pressed Turek directly on whether illegal entrants should be removed from the country.
“If you come to this country illegally, should you be deported?” Llamas asked.
“I agree with Representative Nunn and Miller Meeks and Feenstra in the Dignity Act that there should be a pathway available for you. If you're willing to pass a background check,” Turek responded.
When Llamas interrupted to ask, “So that's a no?”, Turek replied: “Not an immediate deportation.”
Turek added that he supports “a pathway to earn citizenship for people that have come here legally, but the system is completely broken.”
Turek misstates GOP support for the Dignity Act
In his answer, Turek linked Republican Reps. Zach Nunn, Mariannette Miller-Meeks, and Randy Feenstra to the Dignity Act, immigration legislation introduced by Rep. Maria Elvira Salazar of Florida that would create a pathway to legal status for certain illegal immigrants. Neither Miller-Meeks nor Feenstra is a cosponsor of the bill.
The proposal has drawn fire from immigration enforcement advocates. The Immigration Accountability Project called it “amnesty for millions of illegal aliens,” and the Center for Immigration Studies estimated it would provide amnesty for 12 million people now, plus more than five million additional immigrants over the next decade.
Salazar rejects the amnesty label, calling it “a deliberate distortion” of a bill she says puts enforcement first with “zero tolerance for criminals, permanent border security, and hard, earned requirements to step forward and face the law.”
Hinson hits Turek on amnesty in Senate debate
The NBC exchange came after an October Senate debate in which Hinson hammered Turek's record on illegal immigration, citing the case of Sarah Root, a 21-year-old Iowan killed by a drunk driver who was in the country illegally.
“I would say tell that to the mother of Sarah Root, Michelle Root, who lost her daughter to an illegal immigrant who killed Sarah Root because he was here illegally and he was driving drunk,” Hinson said.
Hinson also criticized the Dignity Act itself, saying it “would have allowed up to 5,000 more illegal immigrants to cross across the southern border every single day. We needed to turn off that spigot of illegal immigration, and we did that.”
When Hinson accused Turek of using his legislative newsletter to advise immigrants on avoiding deportation, Turek called the charge “a lie.”
“If you want the cartels to be back in business, vote for Josh Turek, who is allowing your taxpayer dollars to go to illegal immigrants and make it harder for our law enforcement to comply with immigration enforcement,” Hinson said.
A longer record on immigration
Breitbart News previously reported that Turek has repeatedly called for “an easier pathway to citizenship” for illegal immigrants, first in April and again in an August interview with the Cedar Rapids Gazette. His legislative newsletter included a section titled “Know Your Rights as an Immigrant” that directed readers to ACLU guidance, writing that “the ACLU is a great resource that provides tips on what to do in various situations.”
In the Iowa House, Turek voted to restrict state law enforcement from working with ICE to deport dangerous illegal immigrants, according to his Wikipedia biography, and he missed a March 2025 vote on verifying voters' citizenship. His campaign has said he “opposes benefits for illegal immigrants” even as he supported taxpayer funding tied to welfare benefits for illegal immigrants.
Turek's campaign website frames the issue differently, arguing he would “pass bipartisan immigration legislation that strengthens our borders and simplifies an earned pathway to citizenship” while deporting those who come illegally and commit crimes.
Law enforcement ad features sheriffs who resisted ICE
Breitbart News reported October 20 that a Turek campaign ad promoting his law enforcement support features Linn County Sheriff Brian Gardner and Story County Sheriff Paul Fitzgerald, both Democrats who previously opposed certain forms of cooperation with ICE.
“As a law enforcement officer, I know Josh Turek has our back, and yours,” Fitzgerald said in the ad.
Fitzgerald directed Story County to stop honoring ICE detainers in 2014, arguing authorities could not hold someone without a criminal charge or warrant. He also signed a January 2021 letter supporting Alejandro Mayorkas's confirmation as Homeland Security secretary under President Joe Biden. Gardner's office likewise stopped holding inmates past their release times solely on ICE detainers, and he declined to join the federal 287(g) program. The Federation for American Immigration Reform listed Linn County as a sanctuary jurisdiction in 2025.
Miller-Meeks draws her own contrast
The immigration debate is also front and center in Iowa's 1st Congressional District, where Miller-Meeks faces Democrat Christina Bohannan, a University of Iowa law professor. After this week's debate, Miller-Meeks wrote on X: “The border is closed, criminals are being deported, and benefits for illegal aliens are cut off. Christina Bohannan would undo all of it.”
Bohannan opposed Iowa's 2021 Back the Blue Act, which increased penalties for rioting and expanded qualified immunity protections for police. She has acknowledged being “very active” in a group working to abolish ICE and establish sanctuary cities, and in 2019 donated to a bail fund that described itself as working toward “a world without police.”
FAQ
Did Josh Turek say illegal immigrants should be deported?
No. Asked by NBC's Tom Llamas whether people who enter the country illegally should be deported, Turek said “not an immediate deportation” and backed a pathway to citizenship.
Do Miller-Meeks and Feenstra support the Dignity Act?
No. Turek claimed they did, but neither Rep. Mariannette Miller-Meeks nor Rep. Randy Feenstra is a cosponsor of the legislation.
Who is Josh Turek running against?
Turek, a state representative from Council Bluffs, is the Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate seat held by retiring Republican Sen. Joni Ernst. He faces Republican Rep. Ashley Hinson.