A new Iowans for Tax Relief Foundation (ITRF) poll of likely general election voters finds continued support for making it more difficult to raise taxes, within a political environment with close races up and down the ballot.
The survey, conducted September 9-11, 2026, found that an amendment to Iowa’s Constitution requiring a two-thirds supermajority of the state legislature to approve income tax increases receives strong support from Iowa voters.
When respondents were presented with the full ballot language, 43.8% supported the amendment and just 20.4% opposed it, a 23.4-point advantage for supporters. However, more than one-third of voters, 35.8%, were undecided.
The picture becomes much clearer when voters are given a straightforward description of what the amendment would do. Asked whether they would support a constitutional amendment requiring two-thirds of the legislature to approve income tax increases, 68.3% said yes, compared with just 17.7% who said no. The share of undecided voters fell to 14%.
The poll reflects a highly competitive election cycle in Iowa. The generic congressional ballot, along with races for U.S. Senate, Iowa Governor, and Iowa Attorney General, all fall within the poll’s margin of error. When asked to identify the most important issue in deciding their vote for Congress, Iowans pointed to several competing concerns, led by inflation and the economy (23.4%), threats to democracy (16.0%), taxes and government spending (12.8%), and Social Security and Medicare (11.4%).
“It will be interesting to see how public opinion shakes out on issues and candidates with the election just 49 days away,” said Chris Ingstad, president of ITR Foundation. “These results show that there is still a lot for Iowa voters to sort through between now and November 3, and there is plenty that could change over these final weeks.”
This probabilistic survey was conducted September 9 – 11, 2026, with 500 likely general election voters in Iowa Statewide. It has a margin of error of ±4.38%. Known registered voters were interviewed via live phones and SMS. This survey was weighted to a likely general election voter universe.
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