Iowa Democrat Josh Turek’s sharp anti-trans pivot isn’t winning over his Republican opponent

Democratic Senate candidate Josh Turek has released an anti-transgender ad days before the midterm elections, drawing criticism from fellow Democrats and his Republican opponent as he courts Iowa voters.“As a kid in a wheelchair, I faced my share of bullying,” Turek says in the ad. “That’s why I believe that no Iowan should face discrimination. As a Paralympian, I also know it’s important to have rules. It’s why I oppose males competing in female sports, something that is already illegal in Iowa. I’m against taxpayers paying for sex changes too. Anyone tells you any different is lying.”“It’s time to stop the nonsense from both extremes,” Turek adds as the ad shows video clips of members of both parties.The ad highlights a divide among Iowa Democrats over how to respond to Republican attacks on transgender rights. Rob Sand, who is running for governor, has repeatedly said he does not support transgender women competing in women’s sports. But congressional candidate Christina Bohannan has pushed back on anti-trans attacks in her advertising without targeting transgender people.The LGBTQ+ advocacy organization One Iowa Action condemned Turek’s ad, accusing him of breaking assurances he had given the group.“We unequivocally condemn Josh Turek’s recently released campaign ad and the policy shift it represents,” the group said on its website.Related: Iowa Democrat’s new ad takes on anti-trans attacks without throwing transgender people under the bus“When we met with Turek in the aftermath of his first post-primary statement regarding exclusion of trans athletes, we thought he understood our complaints. He assured us that his personal exclusionary beliefs regarding trans athletes would never translate to policy, and he confidently promised that he would not roll out new policy stances that directly contradicted his voting record in the Iowa legislature," the group wrote, adding, "That was a lie.”State Rep. Aime Wichtendahl, the first o