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Iowa Republican Senate candidate Joni Ernst speaks in a television advertisement for her candidacy released October 22, 2014. Joni Ernst via YouTube

With less than two weeks before voters head to the polls, Iowa Republican Senate Candidate Joni Ernst is nursing a small lead in the polls over her Democratic rival, Rep. Bruce Braley, and she's up with a hard-hitting new ad decrying Washington's "bad ideas." But she's also drawing flak after scrapping a planned interview with Iowa's largest newspaper.

"It's a mess - dirty, noisy and it stinks," Ernst says in the new ad as she's surrounded by pigs. "Not this lot. I'm talking about Washington. Too many typical politicians hogging, wasting, and full of...let's just say, bad ideas."

"It's time to stop spending money we don't have and balance the budget," she added. "Cleaning up the mess in Washington is gonna take a whole lot of Iowa common sense."

The ad calls to mind one of Ernst's more memorable spots from her primary campaign, in which she talked about a childhood spent "castrating hogs" and vowed to "make 'em squeal" in Washington if she's elected to the Senate. The ad transformed her candidacy, vaulting her from virtual unknown to primary victor.

According to recent polls, her hard-charging, plainspoken pitch seems to be paying off: A Quinnipiac survey released Thursday showed Ernst ahead of Braley, 48 to 46 percent, a result that roughly aligns with other recent polls of the race. Republicans need a net gain of six seats to seize the Senate majority in the next Congress.

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Iowa Republican Joni Ernst approaches Election Day on her own terms