Election Day, Nov 3 6 daysSenate D 85%House D 97%Governors D 86%Forecast updated Oct 28
2026 forecast · Iowa 4th

Chris McGowan is all but certain to win Iowa's 4th District.

Dave Dawson vs Chris McGowan, an open seat. The model has McGowan ahead by 19.9 points, winning 100 percent of 2,000 simulated elections.

Safe RModel R +19.9Updated October 28, 2026
Dave Dawson
Democrat
40.1%
137,080 projected votes
Chris McGowan
Republican
59.9%
204,951 projected votes
100%McGowan
0%Dawson
McGowan all but certainEach square is one simulated election night, McGowan wins about 100 of 100
RatingSafe R100% chance for McGowan
Model marginR +19.9No polls in the race
80 percent rangeR +10.6 to R +29.22,000 simulations
Projected votes342,031McGowan 59.9%

The district map

Every district in the state, shaded by its rating

Iowa districts

4 districts
Safe DLikely DLean DToss upLean RLikely RSafe R

Vote share

Each candidate's projected share and the range of 80 percent of simulations

Dave DawsonDemocrat · 0% to win
40.1%
Chris McGowanRepublican · 100% to win
59.9%

Scale runs from 25 to 75 percent. The dot is the forecast, the band is the 80 percent range and the brighter tick marks 50 percent.

Projected district vote

342,031 votes
CandidateVotesShare
Chris McGowan R204,95159.9%
Dave Dawson D137,08040.1%
Total342,031100%

Each candidate's expected vote in the On Point simulation, at the forecast's projected turnout.

The trend

Each side's chance of winning over the forecast's recent updates

0%25%50%75%100%0% Dawson100% McGowan18 updates agoToday

Polling

Every poll in the average, and how the model reads it

The Iowa governor polling average
38%40%42%44%46%48%50%52%54%56%58%JulAugSepOct51.2Sand45.4Lahn
The line is the On Point average: a robust LOWESS fit through the polls, weighted by recency, sample, voter screen and pollster grade, refit three times so outliers count for lessDot size is each poll's weight todayHover or use the arrow keys to read any day
What moves the average today
Fox News/Beacon Research and Shaw & CompanySep 28 · 1,008 LV · A++16%Sand +9.0
Emerson College/Nexstar MediaOct 6 · 650 LV · Gold15%Sand +4.0
On Point PollingOct 21 · 491 LV · Gold15%Sand +4.7
New York Times/SienaOct 1 · 606 LV · Gold9.4%Sand +11.0
Echelon Insights for NetChoiceOct 23 · 403 LV · B7.4%Sand +4.0
New York Times/SienaSep 30 · 600 LV · Gold6.6%Sand +11.0
Every other poll together: 30%

This is the same On Point polling average as the full average page. The forecast reads the polls through its own Election Day projection, shown as the On Point average in the table below, and blends it with partisan lean and fundamentals.

Polls of the race

Full average
PollsterSampleAgeMargin
On Point averageWeighted averageNo polls

Each margin is the poll as the pollster published it. The forecast counts every poll after its house effect and the undecided split, which is what the trail above shows; hover a margin for the counted value. Lean R and Lean D mark partisan leaning firms.

Model margin
McGowan +19.9
Chance of winning
Dave Dawson0%
Chris McGowan100%
Simulated vote
Dave Dawson40.1%
Chris McGowan59.9%
How the model gets there
Partisan leanD +31.0
FundamentalsR +19.5
With pollsR +19.9

How we got here

From the state's partisan lean to the forecast, one stage at a time

D +37R +37Partisan leanthe state's baselineD +31.0Fundamentalsapproval, economy, candidatesR +19.5With pollsno pollsR +19.9
On Point on YouTubeThe Iowa House race, explained on YouTubeForecast breakdowns, the polls and election night coverage on the On Point channel.Subscribe
Methodology
Every county is rebuilt by simulating voters going to the polls, 2,000 times, from On Point Polling survey data, past results, and the polling average. How the model works.