Josh Turek

Joshua Mark Turek^[1] (born April 12, 1979) is an American politician and wheelchair basketball player serving as a member of the Iowa House of Representatives from the 20th district. Turek played for the U.S. men's national wheelchair basketball team. A moderate Democrat,^[2] he is a candidate in the 2026 United States Senate election in Iowa.

Josh Turek
Member of the Iowa House of Representatives from the 20th district
Incumbent
Assumed office January 9, 2023
Preceded by	Charlie McConkey
Personal details
Born	Joshua Mark Turek (1979-04-12) April 12, 1979 (age 46) Council Bluffs, Iowa, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Jarolin
Relatives	John (brother)
Education	Southwest Minnesota State University (BA) DeVry University (MBA)
Sports career
Height	5 ft 11 in (1.80 m)
Sport	Wheelchair basketball
Disability	Spina bifida
Disability class	3.5
Coached by	Ron Lykins
Medal record Men's wheelchair basketball Representing the  United States Paralympic Games 2016 Rio de Janeiro Team 2020 Tokyo Team 2012 London Team World Championship 2014 Incheon Team Parapan American Games 2011 Guadalajara Team 2015 Toronto Team 2019 Lima Team

Early life, family and education

Turek was born with spina bifida and has been a wheelchair user since childhood.^[3] He has a brother, John, and sister, Elisha.^[4]

Athletic career

Turek has represented the US in wheelchair basketball at the Summer Paralympics four times. His team won the bronze medal in 2012 and gold medals in 2016 and 2020.^[5]

His brother John and sister Elisha were professional basketball players.^[4]

Political career

Turek announced he was running for Iowa's 20th House of Representatives district in March 2022.^[6] After a recount requested by his Republican opponent Sarah Abdouch, it was confirmed Turek won the election by six votes.^[7][8] He took office on January 9, 2023. Turek has worked extensively as an advocate for disabled people. He is the Iowa legislature's first permanently disabled member.^[9]

In August 2025, Turek announced his candidacy in Iowa's 2026 U.S. Senate election.^[10]

Political views

Turek has called himself a "common-sense" moderate Democrat and "prairie populist".^[11][12]

He opposes school vouchers and cuts to Medicaid.^[1]

Israel–Palestine conflict

On August 18, 2025, Turek was asked about his views on the Gaza war, starvation in Gaza, and the humanitarian crisis. He said that Israel remains a U.S. ally but that there should be limits to U.S. aid to Israel, adding, "The response at this point has been disproportionate, and I don't think that taxpayer dollars or United States support should be going toward the hurting or killing of children or civilians or certainly not impeding aid going into these areas."^[11]