08/29/2026
While we are glad to hear that a televised debate between Dave Dawson for Iowa and Chris McGowan for Iowa is scheduled for Sept. 30, we join Dawson in calling for McGowan to agree to public debates in Sioux City, Council Bluffs, and Ames.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Dawson Accepts KTIV Congressional Debate, Disappointed the Public Won't Be in the Room
Democratic nominee agrees to September 30 televised debate, renews call for three public debates across Iowa's 4th District.
SIOUX CITY, IA — Democratic congressional nominee Dave Dawson has accepted KTIV's invitation to a televised debate in Iowa's 4th Congressional District race on Wednesday, September 30, 2026. The 60-minute debate will air live on KTIV-TV, KTIV.com, and News 4 Now from KTIV Studios in Sioux City, moderated by Matt Breen of KTIV and Dave Price of Gray Media.
While Dawson is glad the voters of the 4th District will finally see both candidates answer questions side by side, he expressed disappointment that the debate will be held in a closed television studio with no audience, rather than in a public venue where residents of the district could attend and ask questions of the candidates themselves.
The Dawson campaign had asked KTIV to hold the debate in public and in conjunction with the League of Women Voters, which has invited both candidates to a public debate at Western Iowa Tech Community College, moderated by the League with questions submitted by audience members. KTIV declined. Notably, September 30 was among the dates the League proposed for its public forum.
"I said yes to this debate, and I will say yes to every debate, because the people of Iowa's 4th District deserve to hear directly from the candidates who want to represent them. But I am disappointed that when we asked for this debate to be held in public, in partnership with the League of Women Voters, so that the residents of this district could be in the room and ask their own questions, the answer was no. Voters should not have to watch through a screen while the candidates sit in a closed studio. This district belongs to the people who live here." — Dave Dawson
Since June, Dawson has publicly called for three debates across the district, in Sioux City, Council Bluffs, and Ames, so that voters in every region of the 36-county district have the opportunity to see the candidates in person. Dawson has held a public town hall in every county of the district. His opponent, Chris McGowan, has yet to agree to any additional debates.
"One televised debate is a start, but it is not enough for a district of 36 counties. My challenge to Chris McGowan still stands: three public debates, in Sioux City, Council Bluffs, and Ames, in front of the voters. I will be there. I hope he will be too." — Dave Dawson
