Nathan Sage held a US Senate campaign kickoff event in Knoxville on Monday night.

A crowd came out to the National Sprint Car Hall of Fame in Knoxville to meet Sage and hear him deliver a speech about his intentions to run for Senate. Sage is running as a Democrat and is looking to defeat incumbent Republican Joni Ernst in the November 2026 General Election. In Sage’s speech, he spoke about being tired of what is going on in government and what is happening with the current administration, along with his passion about being a “voice for all Iowans.” Sage tells KNIA/KRLS that he feels this event was a great first step in his campaign.

“It was interesting because you never know how many people are going to show up and the fact that we packed the house and we had so many people, I know a lot of them were my friends and family that came but also people in Knoxville game, people from Pella, people in Marion County, people from outside of Marion County so it showed that people are interested in what’s happening, it shows people want to know more about what we’re trying to do and it was an exciting time. We got a lot of people to sign the petition to get our name on the ballot, but in general I think it was a great experience and a great first step and I’m excited to see what goes on from here.”

Sage is originally from Mason City and is the current director of the Knoxville Chamber of Commerce. To learn more about him and his campaign you can visit sageforsenate.com.