• Analysis
Democrat Rob Sand wins Iowa governor race, first for party since 2006
Democrat Rob Sand has been elected governor of Iowa, the Associated Press projects, defeating Republican Zach Lahn to become the first Democrat to win the office since 2006.
A rare Democratic breakthrough in Iowa
Rob Sand, the Iowa gubernatorial race's surprise breaker of a two-decade streak, is the state auditor who had been the sole Democrat holding statewide office in Iowa. The Associated Press projects he will now be governor, the first Democrat to win the office since 2006.
Iowa twice backed Barack Obama but has voted for Trump in all three of his presidential campaigns, and Republicans have dominated state politics in recent years. Sand had been leading in the polls ahead of election day.
The race against Zach Lahn
Sand defeated Zach Lahn, a Republican political newcomer backed by Robert F Kennedy Jr's "Make America healthy again" movement. Lahn had won the party's primary over a candidate endorsed by Donald Trump.
During the campaign, Lahn drew fire on several fronts:
- •Iowa Democrats accused him of spending disproportionate time in Kansas; the New York Times reported in October that although he voted in Iowa in 2024, he had his ballot mailed to him in Kansas.
- •He faced scrutiny over his complicated ties to the Koch family, the Republican billionaire mega-donors.
'Balanced government has been restored'
Sand, 44, a native Iowan who has cast himself as a unifier, addressed his victory party on Tuesday night.
"To Iowa Democrats, we've had a hard few years here in Iowa, but balanced government has been restored," Sand said.
He had the crowd sing America the Beautiful together, a feature of his hundreds of town halls across the state. His campaign centred on bipartisan, balanced politics and returning Iowa to a "commonsense state". At an October 28 rally, he said: "We have had 10 years of one-party control in the state of Iowa, and that is what led us to where we are today."
Looking ahead, Sand said he intends to bring people to the table on water quality, accountability and the political process. "Come January, we will be forced to work together," he said of the parties, adding: "Left wing, right wing, same bird."
A family night at the victory party
Sand's parents Kevin and Leslie knocked doors for him during the campaign. "His mother has worked much harder than I," Kevin Sand said, adding that he was happy for Iowa because his son would do his best to turn things around.
Leslie Sand summed up her feelings: "Proud, excited, elated, glad it's over. Proud, proud, proud."
Rob's aunt Carol Sand, a public school teacher, said at the victory party: "He's going to right the ship in Iowa and bring some accountability."
A strong night for Democrats
Sand's win came amid strong Democratic results in gubernatorial races nationwide. In Georgia, former Atlanta mayor Keisha Lance Bottoms became the first Black woman elected governor in the country.
