Iowa County supervisor announces bid for state auditor

Republican Iowa County Supervisor Abigail Maas said she intends to seek her party’s nomination for state auditor in 2026, setting up a primary challenge against Lt. Gov. Chris Cournoyer.

Maas, 33, was first elected to the Iowa County Board of Supervisors in 2020, and was reelected last fall. Her current term expires in 2028.

She lives in South Amana with her husband, Jared, and their two young children, Derek and Cora.

Maas owns a flooring store and a horse boarding facility, and she and her husband are sixth-generation farmers on his family farm, she said.

“It really is a dream job for me,” Maas told The Gazette on Monday. “I’ve learned over the years that people lie; numbers don’t. So in my role as a county supervisor I have found the truth to come out of the numbers. … I’m not looking for the next political step or another political title, I actually want to do the work.”

As a county supervisor who has experience authorizing and tracking local government spending, Maas said she’s keenly aware of the financial strain being caused by rising property taxes across the state, and she sees a role for the state auditor in helping to address the issue.

Maas been a vocal advocate at the Iowa Capitol for property tax reform legislation, testifying before legislative subcommittees earlier this year.

She said the state auditor can help cut excess spending — and thereby lower property taxes — by helping reduce “fraud, waste and abuse” within local government budgets in Iowa.

The Iowa state auditor serves as a "taxpayer's watchdog," ensuring that state and local government officials use taxpayer dollars appropriately. The office is responsible for conducting financial and compliance audits of state agencies, universities, counties, cities and school districts. It also investigates potential fraud, waste and abuse of public funds.

If elected, Maas said she would propose a statewide software system that would allow counties and cities to enter annual budgets, making it easier for supervisors to understand expenses without confusion. This would provide real-time data on property tax spending across the state.

Additionally, Maas said she would work with county auditors and city clerks to identify “holes” in government accounting practices that led to unflagged cases of embezzlement and unsupported payments, and use the information to enhance auditing standards. Maas said such data can inform state lawmakers in reforming the property tax system and emphasizes careful spending of public funds.

She said she would also work to foster a better relationship with local government officials across the state, and believes her work ethic will help set her apart from her competitors.

“Nobody will outwork me, especially as a farmer and a business owner,” Maas said.

She said she intends to tour all 99 counties in the state ahead of next year’s election, and has visited five counties so far.

Current state auditor Rob Sand, a Democrat, has launched a campaign for Iowa governor in 2026, creating an open seat.

Cournoyer, of Le Claire, announced her candidacy in May to seek the Republican nomination for auditor, after Gov. Kim Reynolds announced she would not seek another term as governor.

  Buy Photo

Cournoyer, who has been lieutenant governor since December, has Reynolds' endorsement in the campaign.

If elected, Cournoyer said she plans to improve the auditor’s role in helping local governments identify efficiencies, integrating artificial intelligence into the auditing process and making the auditor’s office a home for recommendations emerging from the governor’s DOGE Task Force on modernizing government operations.

“The people of Iowa deserve an auditor who will protect their dollars, keep politics out of the office, and bring a business-minded, results-oriented approach to every audit,” Cournoyer said in a statement announcing her campaign for auditor. “That’s exactly what I intend to deliver.”

So far, no Democrats have entered the race.

Comments: (319) 398-8499; tom.barton@thegazette.com