Crawford County Supervisor Dave Muhlbauer picked as Rob Sand’s gubernatorial running mate

Crawford County Supervisor Dave Muhlbauer will be Iowa Auditor Rob Sand’s running mate on the Democratic ticket in the 2026 Iowa gubernatorial race, Sand’s campaign announced Monday.

Muhlbauer, a fifth-generation farmer in western Iowa, is serving his second term on the Crawford County Board of Supervisors. He had previously run as a Democratic candidate for the U.S. Senate in the 2022 election, seeking the seat held by U.S. Sen. Chuck Grassley, but exited the race in 2021 before the Democratic primary. He also comes from a line of Iowa politicians — his father, former state Rep. Dan Muhlbauer, represented Manilla from 2011 to 2014, and his grandfather Louis Muhlbauer served in the state legislature from 1983 to 1992.

In a campaign announcement Monday, Muhlbauer said his campaign for lieutenant governor alongside Sand is about “public service, not politics — something I learned from my dad and grandpa when they served our community.”

“When there’s work on the farm to be done or your neighbor needs help bailing hay, you don’t ask who they voted for,” Muhlbauer said. “You put on your boots and lend a hand. Rob understands that, and that’s why I’m proud to be part of Team Sand.”

Sand has aimed to position himself outside the typical “Democrat” label as a gubernatorial candidate in a state where Republicans have seen major victories in recent election cycles — and a state where Sand, Iowa’s auditor of state, is currently the only Democrat to hold statewide elected office.

Muhlbauer, who described himself in 2021 as coming from a family of “old-school, farming labor Democrats,” said he was honored to join Sand’s campaign as running mate while reiterating Sand’s campaign slogan: “I cannot wait to meet voters all across our state to talk about making Iowa not redder or bluer, but better and truer,” he said in a statement.

Sand praised Muhlbauer as someone who “represents the best of our state: hard-working, honest, and always willing to help out.”

“I’m proud to have him on Team Sand,” the gubernatorial candidate said in a statement. “Dave has a track record of working with everyone to deliver for western Iowa and knows it’s time to rotate the crops in state government. He’ll be a great partner on the trail and an even better lieutenant governor for the people of Iowa.”

When asked at a Sunday campaign event about how he was approaching the decision to choose a running mate, Sand told reporters he was looking for “somebody I knew I could trust — who’s same person every day, the same person you talked to a year ago.”

Iowa and national Democrats quickly put their support behind Muhlbauer as the lieutenant governor candidate Monday. Iowa House Minority Leader Brian Meyer said Sand made an “excellent decision” choosing him as a candidate.

“He will bring a unique perspective to the ticket and will be able to immediately join Rob in fighting insider corruption in Des Moines,” Meyer said in a statement. “With rural hospitals and schools closing, family farm foreclosures increasing, and prices soaring, the Sand-Muhlbauer ticket offers a strong voice for ending one-party control in the state. I cannot think of a better choice.”

The Democratic Lieutenant Governors Association Chair also endorsed Muhlbauer Monday.

“For too long, powerful insiders and special interests have run Iowa’s government while working families, farmers, and local communities have been left behind.,” Delaware Lt. Governor Kyle Evans Gay, president of the DLGA, said in a statement. “Rob Sand and Dave Muhlbauer are offering something different: leaders who put right over wrong and who will get to work rebuilding Iowa’s economy, strengthening its public schools, and making sure every Iowan’s voice is heard.”

The next step is for Muhlbauer to be officially nominated and approved as the Iowa Democratic Party’s candidate for lieutenant governor at the IDP state convention on Saturday. The Iowa GOP state convention will also be held Saturday, where Republican Zach Lahn, who won the competitive Republican gubernatorial primary, and his running mate will be officially nominated. Lahn has not yet announced his running mate.