Public Opinion Survey: Majority of Iowa Voters Are Concerned about Tap Water Quality
Sep 10, 2026
Memo | Slides | Food Citizen Project
A new statewide public opinion survey of registered likely voters in Iowa found that a majority (60%) rank drinking water quality among their top-five concerns ahead of the November elections, just behind cost of living, and health care. The survey was commissioned by the Johns Hopkins Center for a Livable Future (CLF) as part of its Food Citizen Project and conducted by GQR, a public opinion research firm. The Iowa Environmental Council contributed to topics included in the survey.
The mixed-mode survey was fielded in July, 2026 and drew responses from 800 likely voters in Iowa. One of its key findings is that most voters are aware of water quality issues in Iowa, with 84% saying they heard about the issue recently. When asked what they heard about Iowa’s drinking water quality, most reported hearing about contamination with nitrates and chemicals.
The majority of the respondents reported having favorable feelings toward the state’s agriculture industry. At the same time, views vary by type of operation: small and medium-sized independent farms are near-universally liked (90% favorable), while large-scale corporate industrial farming and national/multi-national agricultural corporations are unpopular (76% and 67% unfavorable, respectively).
This survey was conducted just days before a POLITICO Magazine article investigated the link between contaminated water and rising cancer rates in Iowa, and what the article refers to as the decrease in water quality’s “increasingly undeniable tie to the state’s signature industry: agriculture.” Iowa is one of only three states where cancer rates are rising, and the state now has the second highest rate in the nation. (The article was written by CLF senior research associate Tom Philpott and a collaborating journalist, Nina Elkadi.)
Earlier this year, in February, Food and Water Action conducted a poll in Iowa that shows strong cross-party support for new regulations on industrial agriculture to reduce pollution. This survey provides additional findings about voters’ levels of concern and their feelings toward agriculture.
“It’s clear from this survey that voters in Iowa are aware and concerned about drinking water quality,” says Patti Truant Anderson, policy director at CLF. “Unsurprisingly, given recent media coverage, many voters brought up concerns about health, pollution, and high cancer rates related to water quality.”
Key findings from the survey of likely Iowa voters include:
Drinking water quality and the environment ranks as one of the most important issues to Iowa voters, just after cost of living, health care, and Social Security and Medicare.
In Iowa, drinking water quality is a bipartisan issue: 75% of Democrats, 62% of Independents and 54% of Republicans say they are concerned about the quality of their tap water at home.
84% of Iowa voters report hearing about Iowa’s drinking water quality recently, and nearly half (47%) have heard a lot about this. Among those who had heard something, 85% said that what they heard made them feel more concerned.
55% of respondents filter their tap water at least weekly, and 44% buy and drink bottled water at least weekly.
40% of respondents said that they had a personal experience with cancer, which includes themselves or an immediate family member.
View full results from the poll.
For more information about the survey and its public health implications, please contact Patti Truant Anderson, policy director at CLF: ptruant1@jhu.edu.