She served more than 20 years in the military. Ernst: I was harassed in the military

Iowa GOP Senate candidate Joni Ernst says in an interview published Friday that she was sexually harassed during her time in the military.

“I had comments, passes, things like that,” Ernst told Time, which noted she served more than 20 years in the military.


Of the harassment, Ernst said it was something she was able to say knock it off “and it simply stopped.”

( POLITICO's full Chain of Command series)

“But there are other circumstances both for women and for men where they don’t stop and they may be afraid to report it,” the Iowa state senator said.

Ernst said in the interview she would support removing sex assault cases from the military chain of command, which the Pentagon and many Republicans oppose. She added that she didn’t back Sen. Kirsten Gillibrand’s bill on the issue but wanted to work with the New York Democrat and others to craft a new measure.

Ernst, who won the five-way Republican Senate primary battle in June, will face Democratic Rep. Bruce Braley in November to replace retiring Sen. Tom Harkin. She gained headlines after she spoke of castrating hogs in a campaign ad released earlier this year.

( QUIZ: How well do you know Joni Ernst?)

If Ernst wins, she will be the first female combat veteran to serve in the Senate, Time said. Ernst, currently a lieutenant colonel in the Iowa Army National Guard, also served a tour in Iraq.