Meet Matt Robinson, Democratic candidate for Iowa House District 72.
Matt is a Dubuque native, union carpenter, former chair of the Dubuque County Democrats, and someone who knows firsthand what it means to work hard and still wonder whether the paycheck will stretch far enough.
Now he’s running to represent the community where he grew up—and to give working people a stronger voice in Des Moines.
Built in Dubuque
Dubuque has always been home for Matt Robinson.
He grew up here in a working-class family and graduated from Hempstead High School in 2011. His mother worked in patient services, his father was a carpenter, and Matt says the values of hard work, perseverance, and empathy were part of his upbringing.
After high school, Matt took a different path than many of his classmates. Instead of heading to college, he went into the building trades.
Over the years, he has helped build schools, hospitals, homes, and other projects—the kind of work that quite literally builds a community.
But working in construction also showed Matt another side of working life.
Weather could mean lost hours. Seasonal work could mean an uncertain paycheck. Benefits weren’t always guaranteed. And even while working hard, making ends meet could still be difficult.
Those experiences began shaping the question at the heart of his politics: Should it really be this hard for working people to build a good life?
Finding His Voice in the Labor Movement
After his first campaign for the Iowa Senate in 2022, Matt joined the United Brotherhood of Carpenters Local 678.
He says joining the union brought better support, opportunities, workplace protections, and a stronger voice on the job. Today, he works as a union carpenter and describes himself simply as someone who’s out in the field doing the work.
In a 2026 interview, Matt put it this way:
“I’m a field carpenter. I’m out in the field every day, baking in the sun and freezing in the cold.”
For Matt, being part of organized labor also reinforced something bigger: workers shouldn’t have to face challenges alone.
That commitment extends beyond the jobsite. Matt has volunteered with Dubuque Area Labor Harvest, including helping transport food for distribution to people in the community.
From Party Volunteer to Candidate
Matt’s involvement in Dubuque didn’t stop at the union hall.
Following the 2022 election, he became chair of the Dubuque County Democratic Party, serving through the 2024 election cycle. In that role, he worked not just to elect himself, but to recruit, support, and organize around other Democratic candidates throughout the county. His tenure as chair is independently documented in local news coverage from 2024 and 2025.
Matt says those years gave him the opportunity to talk with people from across the community—and he kept hearing versions of the same concern: people were working hard, but they didn’t feel like things were getting easier.
Eventually, he decided it was time to run again.
This time, he was running at home.
Why He’s Running
Matt is now the Democratic nominee for Iowa House District 72, representing an area that includes the north and west sides of Dubuque. His campaign centers on three priorities: protecting working people’s paychecks, supporting public schools, and strengthening workers’ rights.
When he filed his nomination papers in March, union members from across the region joined him.
Matt explained his campaign in one sentence:
“I started this campaign because I believe that working people deserve to have a voice in the Iowa House.”
Making Work Pay
Matt argues that too many families are doing everything they’re supposed to do and still struggling with everyday costs.
His proposals include raising Iowa’s minimum wage, restoring unemployment insurance benefits, and policies aimed at putting more money into working people’s paychecks. He has called for an $18-an-hour minimum wage.
For Matt, the issue isn’t theoretical. It’s connected to his own experience with inconsistent work and tight household budgets.
Investing in Public Schools
Matt calls public schools pillars of the community.
His education priorities include increasing state support for public schools and community colleges, restoring and funding Iowa’s Area Education Agencies, and improving teacher pay and retention.
Standing Up for Workers
Matt’s experience before and after joining a union also shapes his approach to workplace policy.
He supports strengthening workers’ ability to organize, restoring collective bargaining rights for public-sector workers, and funding workplace-safety programs.
His goal is straightforward: people who go to work should earn a fair day’s pay, have a voice in their workplace, and come home safely to their families.
Building a Better Iowa
There’s a phrase Matt returns to throughout his campaign: build a better Iowa.
For a carpenter, the metaphor fits.
But Matt’s story is less about the slogan than the experiences behind it—the Dubuque kid who went into the trades, struggled with the same bills and uncertainty other working families know, found a stronger voice through his union, organized with his neighbors, and eventually decided he wanted people with those experiences represented at the Statehouse.
As Matt said when launching his campaign:
“This campaign is about building a better Iowa — together.”
For Matt Robinson, that starts right here at home.
Candidate Information
Matt Robinson
Democratic candidate for Iowa House District 72
Union Carpenter, Carpenters Local 678
Dubuque, Iowa