Gov.-elect Rob Sand adds Republican, independent to transition team

Iowa Gov.-elect Rob Sand announced new members of what he termed his “tripartisan” transition team Monday — including a Republican and an independent.

Sand, the Democratic candidate who won the Nov. 3, 2026 election to become Iowa’s next governor, discussed his leadership team during a news conference at the Iowa Capitol. Members include former Iowa GOP chair Mike Mahaffey and state Rep. Brian Lohse, an independent who had previously served as a Republican state lawmaker but detached himself from the Republican Party after his primary loss in June 2026.

The news comes after Sand announced Elisabeth Buck and Morgan Miller will be co-directors of the Sand Transition Committee. Buck has worked on the transition teams for former Iowa Democratic Govs. Chet Culver and Tom Vilsack, and Miller worked as the political director of the Iowa State Education Association. These two officials, alongside Mahaffey and Lohse, will help Sand prepare to take over the powers of governor — as well as control over much of the state government structure through agencies, boards and commissions.

Sand said adding a Republican and an independent to this team shows his commitment to his campaign pledges to avoid partisan politics. He said it also reflects Iowa “traditions” of nonpartisan work in government, pointing to Iowa’s history of creating the first merit-based judicial selection system and independent redistricting commission.

“I think that the best things that we can do are the things that will last, because it’s not something that once you do it, well, years later the other party comes in and just undoes it,” Sand said. “If we actually want to make progress as a state, we need to craft solutions that everyone can look at and say, ‘No, that’s a good thing that we did.'”

Sand also announced Abe Rakov would serve as his chief of staff. Rakov, who most recently was executive director of End Citizens United, met Sand in 2018,when he came to Des Moines as co-founder and executive director for the voting rights organization Let America Vote. At the time, Sand was running for Iowa auditor. The governor-elect said Rakov’s experience working for former Missouri Secretary of State Jason Kander, a Democrat, shows that he will be a good fit in hiss administration.

“He ran the Secretary of State’s office … he was dealing with divided government at that time,” Sand said. “They were able to get quite a bit of stuff done through the legislature, and so he’s got experience working across the aisle. And I’ve known Abe and kept in touch with him since then. He’s always been someone, to me, who has been a trusted advisor, and someone genuinely interested in public service and getting good things done.”

Iowa will have a divided government for the first time in a decade, as Sand’s win marks the end of a GOP trifecta in the Statehouse. How successfully the governor’s office will be able to work with Republican majorities in the state House and Senate remains to be seen. Iowa House Speaker Pat Grassley said Friday that House Republicans are willing to discuss measures that are “reasonable and responsible for Iowans,” but warned, “we’re not going to be afraid to draw the line if there’s things that we think go too far or start to compromise our principles.”

Sand said he has long been prepared to work with a GOP-controlled state Legislature, and said his campaign has emphasized that accomplishing their goals will mean working together with Republicans and independents.

“I’ll say this: I’m excited to get to work,” Sand said. “I know myself, I control myself. And any legislator that supports a bill that I sign is going to be invited to that bill signing ceremony. Credit given where credit is due. I can’t guarantee you that the Legislature will want to get things done. I think they do, they have said they want to. And they’ve said that publicly, that they’ll be working with me on places where we agree. Good. Let’s go get stuff done. Time will tell.”