Ashley Hinson missed almost 200 votes in Congress

Iowa Rep. Ashley Hinson missed almost 200 votes in Congress, including one to crack down on AI-generated child pornography.

Hinson is now a Republican candidate for the U.S. Senate facing Democratic state Rep. Josh Turek in a high-stakes election.

According to congressional records, Hinson has missed 163 committee votes and 33 floor votes since joining the House in 2021. Some of these absences coincide with when she had COVID in January 2022 and April 2026, but the vast majority are unexplained.

Many of Hinson’s missed votes were in the House Appropriations Committee, which determines federal funding for various government programs.

In May 2025, for example, Hinson missed a committee vote to increase funding for the Internet Crimes Against Children Task Force. The committee manager said the increase was to combat the rise of AI-generated child pornography and the strain it was putting on law enforcement.

The National Center for Missing & Exploited Children said it received over a million reports in 2025 of sexually explicit AI images of minors, many of which used real children as models.

Hinson also missed several votes aimed at reducing violent crime.

In September 2025, she missed three committee votes: one to boost funding to enforce the Violence Against Women Act, another to increase funding for transitional housing grants for domestic abuse victims, and a third to fund a community-based violence intervention initiative.

Iowa Public Radio reported that domestic violence deaths increased in the state between 2021 and 2024.

Hinson also skipped a vote funding the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force.

Hinson missed multiple committee votes related to health care, including a 2023 vote to address doctor shortages in the Veterans Affairs system, a 2025 vote to increase funding for nutrition programs for seniors, and another 2025 vote to fund a program that trains physicians in rural areas.

Hinson missed a vote this year on a sweeping amendment related to data center transparency. It would require data centers to publicly disclose their construction plans and compel the Energy Department to analyze the effect centers have on utility bills.

There are now 116 data centers in Iowa. Several Iowa communities have passed moratoriums to stop more centers from being built. Hinson told KGAN News this month that data center rules “are best decided at the local level.”

Last month, it was reported that Hinson didn’t vote on 11 amendments to the 2027 Defense Appropriations bill because she was attending a fundraiser for her U.S. Senate campaign.

House members typically miss about 2% to 3% of roll-call votes in a year, according to congressional voting data. Committee votes are often not counted in a legislator’s record, making it appear as though Hinson has above-average attendance despite sitting out these key decisions.

A recent Emerson College poll showed Hinson narrowly leading Turek by three points.