Rob Sand, the Democratic Party’s nominee for governor, rallied with supporters Sunday night in Des Moines and called for an end to political polarization.
“People in this state know that things are messed up, but it’s not enough for us to just say: ‘Throw ’em out.’ That’s a start, but we’ve got to do better,” Sand said. “I’m sick and tired of the politics that tell us we should hate people that we love.”
Sand has based his campaign on an appeal to independents and Republicans as well as Democrats. “Most importantly because we are building a coalition not of red-versus-blue, but of the well fed versus the fed up, right?” Sand asked, to cheers.
An Iowa Republican Party spokeswoman said Sand “loves to talk about rising above the two party system until it’s time to campaign…and share the stage with Democrat Party insiders.” The chairman of the Democratic Governors Association joined Sand at last night’s rally. Andy Beshear has won two terms as governor in Kentucky, a state President Trump won by 30 points in 2024. “I am living, breathing proof that Democrats can win anywhere,” Beshear said. “And we should be fighting everywhere.”
Trump won Iowa by 13 points in 2024 and Iowa Republicans currently hold a nearly 200,000 voter registration edge over Democrats. Sand, who was unopposed in the Democratic Primary, learned on Tuesday night that his Republican opponent in the General Election is Zach Lahn and mentioned Lahn at the end of his remarks.
“He does not presently live in Iowa enough to do the job of governor, in which case I would like to quote to him one of his own ads: ‘Iowa jobs are for Iowans,'” Sand said and, as the crowd cheered, Sand added: “And that includes governor.”
Lahn grew up in northwest Iowa and moved back to Iowa from Kansas in 2023, but flies back to Kansas about once a week to spend time with children he and his wife have from previous marriages. Lahn has accused Sand of masquerading as a moderate and a senior advisor for Lahn’s campaign said Lahn is “a sixth generation Iowan who tells the truth about who he is and what he believes.”