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Iowa gubernatorial candidate Sand pitches unity, faces pointed questions on transgender rights
Sand: Iowa should be ‘welcoming,’ promises to veto new ‘culture-war’ measures.
Sep. 5, 2025 9:37 am, Updated: Sep. 5, 2025 10:31 am
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NORTH LIBERTY — At a town hall meant to showcase unity in a polarized era, Democratic State Auditor Rob Sand on Thursday was pressed to define how he would protect transgender Iowans’ rights — drawing the sharpest exchanges of the evening and setting the tone for a wide-ranging discussion on water quality, education, school vouchers, mental health and child care.
A standing-room-only crowd of a couple hundred people packed into Field Day Brewing in North Liberty Thursday to hear from Sand and ask questions of the gubernatorial candidate.
Sand faced pointed questions on LGBTQ protections, after Republican state lawmakers this year repealed state civil rights protections for transgender Iowans. Sand, who is running for Iowa governor in 2026, was asked what it would take to “restore their rights.”
He called the rollback of protections for transgender Iowans “wrong,” saying “you should not be fired from your job in the state of Iowa for being different. You should not be evicted from your apartment.”
At the town hall, he said his faith compels him to side with people “pushed aside,” and promised to use the governor’s office — if elected — to set a welcoming tone and to block new “culture-war” measures.
“We can have somebody in the governor’s office and the next time some stupid culture-war bill comes up, they veto it,” Sand said to applause. But he also cautioned that a governor cannot “unilaterally restore” rights that were repealed by the Legislature.
“If someone comes here and says to you that they’re going to unilaterally restore them, this is exactly the kind of strongman mentality that brings us to dangerous politics,” he said, adding that change would require working with the same lawmakers who approved the rollbacks.
Sand was also asked about Iowa’s law barring transgender girls from competing in girls’ sports. The person, who said they had played girls’ sports in high school and college, argued that the ban was rooted in “fear and discrimination” rather than evidence, and asked if Sand had statistics he could point to support such bans.
In a May 13 interview with conservative talk radio host Simon Conway, Sand said he doesn’t believe transgender Iowans should compete in girls’ sports.
“Do you think biological boys or men should play women’s sports?” Conway asked.
Sand answered, simply, “No.”
Speaking at the town hall, Sand emphasized the importance of listening — noting that he’s spoken with people on both sides of the issue — and made clear he wanted to continue that dialogue.
He described that openness as “the right thing to do,” and emphasized the importance of creating a welcoming environment for all Iowans, regardless of their background or identity.
Sand began the town hall, as he often does, asking attendees across the political spectrum — Republicans, independents and Democrats — to raise their hands to be acknowledged and then join together in a brief chorus of “America the Beautiful.” He framed the gesture as part of his effort to “change our political culture,” arguing that the two parties are “united in their hatred of each other” and that voters deserve officials “who are actually doing the work to solve problems.”
He criticized the current political system as broken, emphasizing the need for accountability and change. He highlighted Iowa's near decade of one-party control and advocated for a more inclusive political culture, urging collaboration across party lines.
He discussed his background as a chief prosecutor, focusing on public corruption and efficiency. Sand proposed initiatives like universal preschool to address child care shortages and emphasized the importance of mental health services and public education. He called for voter engagement to shift Iowa's political landscape.
Sand repeatedly returned to that theme as he fielded questions for roughly an hour, mixing biography — he grew up hunting, fishing and going to church, registered as an independent before becoming a Democrat — with a defense of his record as auditor and promises of a pragmatic approach if he becomes governor.
On water quality
Sand said Iowans should not be asked to argue over whether a problem exists.
“How could you think that there isn’t?” he asked, accusing state leaders of making it “harder to find out” by scaling back transparency and environmental monitoring.
He said he is meeting with stakeholders across agriculture, science and conservation fields, reading research and building what he called an “effective and achievable” plan.
He declined to unveil specifics, promising to return with more detail after further consultation.
“What’s worked for me is asking a lot of questions,” Sand said. “We’re going to put together the most effective and achievable thing we can do for water quality — and safe — because there is a problem.”
On education and school vouchers
He said Iowa’s Education Savings Accounts program — which uses public funds to help families pay private-school tuition — is an “invitation to waste, fraud and abuse” because private schools spending ESA dollars are not subject to the same auditing standards as public school districts.
“In the spending law right now, there’s one thing you cannot do: you can’t pay rebates to parents,” Sand said. “Anything else you want to do with that money? You can do it.”
He argued that without audit access to private spending of public dollars, taxpayers cannot be assured that funds are used for instruction rather than perks.
“If we have no public oversight of private schools, then don’t give them public money,” he said.
Sand linked that argument to his broader case about accountability and his clashes with Republican state leaders over limits placed on the auditor’s office in 2023.
He said lawmakers “changed the law to make it harder for the state auditor to find waste,” despite warnings from nonpartisan auditing groups.
“Partisanship is poison,” Sand said, contending the Legislature’s own oversight committees have held minimal hearings in recent years. He predicted that if a Democrat is elected governor, lawmakers would suddenly rediscover enthusiasm for oversight: “For some reason, I think the Iowa Legislature would be incredibly interested in government oversight if there was a Democratic governor.”
He contrasted Iowa’s emphasis on vouchers with Republican-led Nebraska’s recent “single biggest investment in public schools,” pointing to that as a model for bipartisan support of education. “It’s still OK to be a Republican and support public schools,” he said.
On mental health
Sand said the state’s shortage of psychiatric beds and providers is straining families. He asked attendees to raise their hands if they had struggled to find help for a loved one; many did.
“This is wrong,” he said. “When you are going through someone who is in a crisis, it is the only thing in your life.”
He called for adding inpatient capacity and paying mental-health professionals more, pointing to his sister’s experience as a provider whose appointment book filled in two weeks. The need, he said, should unite Iowans who lead with empathy and those who simply want to prevent crises from escalating.
On child care
Sand said the central constraint is staffing — not just building more rooms. He endorsed universal preschool for Iowa 4-year-olds as a step that would open slots for younger children, ease costs for families and stabilize providers’ finances.
“The return on preschool is $17 for every single dollar that you spend,” he said, arguing that early learning investments would do more to relieve the workforce squeeze than subsidies aimed at construction.
Voters: Sand offers refreshing honesty, but must sharpen stance on trans issues
Sand drew praise and cautious optimism from voters who attended the town hall, though some said they want to hear more specifics on how he would protect transgender rights and tackle the state’s biggest challenges.
Mary Rita Patchett, a 70-year-old retired nurse from Iowa City, said she appreciated Sand’s willingness to discuss water quality, a top concern for her after moving from Wisconsin.
“I know how the waterways can be kept clean and beautiful, and it’s frightening to me now that I live here in Iowa to have the waters so contaminated and the cancer on the rise,” she said.
Patchett said Sand’s response — stressing the complexity of the issue and the need to work with lawmakers — was “positive,” though she worries whether the Legislature will act.
Sue Clarahan, 67, a dietitian specializing in eating disorders, described herself as an independent tired of both parties. She said Sand’s criticism of private school vouchers and his focus on mental health resonated.
“What I liked about him is he did not promise anything,” Clarahan, of Coralville, said. “He said it’s going to be hard, it’s going to take work. That’s really refreshing.”
Both women said they left the event feeling upbeat, pointing to the crowd size 14 months before the election as a sign of energy.
“People are looking for change, people are looking for answers,” Patchett said.
Elizabeth Koehler, 23, a University of Iowa graduate student, asked Sand directly about trans rights. With a trans loved one, she said the issue is personal.
She emphasized the importance of trans rights as an issue in next year’s Democratic gubernatorial primary.
“I think it was as good as he could have given,” Koehler said of Sand’s response. “… There's only so much he can do with a red state House and Senate. But I think that just hearing that he's willing to keep pushing on this” was good to hear.
She added she still plans to support him, but believes any Democrat running for governor “will have to take some type of stance on this issue.”
“Iowa used to be a very progressive and very welcoming state, and I think over the last 10 to 20 years it's really like digressed from that,” she said. “And I think that any Democrat that's going to run for the governorship will have to take some type of stance on this issue if they want to appeal and get the support of Democrats in this state.”
Gov. Kim Reynolds, who has held the job since 2017, announced earlier this year she will not seek re-election to another four-year term.
Two Democrats — Sand and political consultant Julie Stauch — are currently running for governor. Sand, the only statewide elected Democrat in Iowa, is widely considered the favorite to earn the party’s nomination.
On the Republican side, state Rep. Eddie Andrews of Johnston, Williamsburg pastor Brad Sherman and former Iowa Department of Administrative Services director Adam Steen are running for the office. U.S. Rep. Randy Feenstra and state Sen. Mike Bousselot are currently running exploratory campaigns.
Comments: (319) 398-8499; tom.barton@thegazette.com
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