Iowa Gov.-elect Rob Sand emphasizes need for Iowa government to work together

Iowa Gov.-elect Rob Sand, emphasized Friday that his priorities, and those of Iowa lawmakers, will need to be the product of collaboration now that Republicans’ trifecta majority has been divided. 

“We don’t elect a dictator, right? We don’t elect a king or a queen,” Sand said during the taping of “Iowa Press” on Iowa PBS. “We elect a governor, and what that governor does is dependent in part on what the Legislature does.” 

Sand, a Democrat who is currently serving as Iowa state auditor, won against Republican candidate Zach Lahn in the Tuesday election. While results haven’t been certified, Lahn conceded Tuesday night and Gov. Kim Reynolds and Sand are initiating the transition of the position. 

In his first interview since the election, Sand spoke about his priorities, including putting restrictions on data centers and cutting the state deficit in half. He also addressed the possibility of the Legislature calling a special session to try to restrict his powers before he takes office and the possibility of Iowa having the first Democratic caucus for the 2028 election cycle. 

He said his appointment to the position shows that Iowans want a government that works together.

“We’re going to have me as governor and a Republican-led Legislature,” Sand said. “We’re going to check and balance each other. That means everybody can settle down a little bit and breathe easy.”

Iowa House Republicans met for caucus Friday but did not announce plans to push for a special session. 

When asked about the possibility and what he’d say to folks considering that, Sand said, “Don’t do that.” 

“Are we here to serve the public or are we here to serve a private club?” Sand said. Voters “… knew what the laws were. We had conversations, and I answered questions about everything a governor can and can’t do. To come in now after the fact and change the meaning of what those voters said, that’s not public service, that’s politics.” 

Transition team

Sand announced the leaders of his transition team Thursday. Elisabeth Buck and Morgan Miller will serve as co-directors of the Sand Transition Committee. Buck, the former president of the United Way of Central Iowa, also worked on the transition teams — and as deputy chief of staff — for previous Iowa Democratic Govs. Chet Culver and Tom Vilsack. Miller, the political director of the Iowa State Education Association, has previously worked on several political campaigns and with AFSCME Council 61.

“I’m honored to have Elisabeth Buck and Morgan Miller on the team that will help me hit the ground running on day one,” Sand said in a statement. “Both Elisabeth and Morgan bring decades of experience, relationships, and public policy expertise that will help prepare me to serve the people of Iowa. I appreciate their commitment, guidance, and shared love for this state that will help me serve all Iowans as governor, and appreciate their service to our state.”

Sand has launched the website IowaForAll.com to share updates and information about the team’s work to prepare for office.

Reynolds pledged to support a smooth transition process as she ends her term as governor. In a statement, Reynolds said she spoke to Sand Thursday “to offer my congratulations and express my personal commitment to a strong transition.”

“Now that the election is over, it’s time to work together so Iowa remains the best state in the nation to live, work, and raise a family for generations to come,” Reynolds said in a statement. “My team and I will do our part to ensure the incoming administration is ready for their first day in office. Iowans deserve nothing less.”

Speaking on “Iowa Press” Friday, Sand said he is “not planning to ask for any resignations” of state officials, with two exceptions for the directors of Iowa Department of Education and the Iowa Department of Management.

Sand said he was concerned about the education department’s spending related to the state’s private school voucher program, which is something he has often criticized. He did not explain why the Department of Management was also a concern, but he said he wants to have conversations with these directors before making any decisions. 

“You want to make sure that you have public servants in these positions, and my assumption is going to be that I might have alignment with some of these people until I know that I don’t,” Sand said. “And I can’t do that unless I’ve got those doors open and I’m able to have those conversations with people.” 

Sand said he has not talked to his Lt. Gov.-elect Dave Mulhbauer about the responsibilities and projects he would take on in the role. 

“Whatever he says he’s interested in, it’ll be in that world of what he’s interested in,” Sand said. 

Sand says his budget will cut state’s $1B deficit in half

Sand said he doesn’t have a budget director yet but has been working with Randy Bauer, who served as state budget director under former Gov. Tom Vilsack, to put “pen to paper” on budget ideas like income limits on school vouchers, taxing marijuana, and making data centers pay “all of their taxes.” 

“Our budget deficit right now, $1 billion – $1.3 billion … I’m pretty sure I’ll have a proposal that’ll at least cut that in half,” the governor-elect said. 

He acknowledged that with any budget, however, it will have to be passed by the Legislature, which maintained a Republican majority after the election. 

“This is part of why I think that Iowans were moving my direction in this campaign,” Sand said. “They want us to be working together, and they just made a decision that forces us to do that, and I think that’s a good thing.” 

On Tuesday, Iowans also approved a constitutional amendment requiring a two-thirds vote of lawmakers to increase personal and corporate income taxes. 

When asked if the amendment would make it more difficult to fund state services, Sand, who opposed the constitutional amendment, emphasized the need for the state to improve its efficiency. He said the Public Innovations & Efficiencies, or PIE, strategy he implemented as state auditor, should be applied at the local and state level. 

Sand also said “we’ve got to fund” the Iowa Water and Land Legacy, or IWiLL, trust to support water and natural resources improvements. Sand said at minimum, the state should enact the three-eighths of a cent sales tax increase proposed in the 2010-passed constitutional amendment, but he said there are “several directions” to look at a sales tax increase. 

Iowa National Guard deployment

Washington D.C. Council Public Safety Committee Chair Brooke Pinto called Friday on newly elected Democratic governors to pull national guard troops from D.C. once they take office.

Sand was one of five states that flipped governor control Tuesday, according to unofficial results from the Associated Press. 

He said he would need to talk to National Guard leadership and Iowans on the ground about what their experience has been and what they are doing in D.C. before he would make a decision. 

“I want to make decisions that I know are based in reality,” Sand said. “And whether or not it’s somebody in one party or another party asking me to do it, I don’t really care about.” 

Iowa Democratic caucuses

In July, the Democratic National Committee panel denied Iowa’s waiver to hold an early caucus contest for 2028, despite the state’s long history of holding “first in the nation” contests to nominate presidential candidates on both sides of the aisle. The Iowa Democratic Party could decide to “go rogue” and hold a caucus without regard to the DNC calendar. 

Sand said that while he doesn’t “really care what a private club thinks,” it would be “smart to have us do historically what we’ve done.” 

“We’re going to follow Iowa law,” Sand said. 

Through the campaign process and speaking with members of national press outlets, Sand said he heard repeatedly that Iowans ask questions of candidates that are “head and shoulders above” what voters in other states ask. 

“Many folks have told me that we do a good job with this – we’ll see where we go from here,” Sand said. 

Going hunting

Since Tuesday, Sand said he has enjoyed spending some additional time with his family and said he hopes to take advantage of the cold front this weekend to go hunting. 

“I haven’t put that much time in the woods because I’m really excited about what comes ahead, and the responsibility, the opportunity, is a pretty incredible thing,” Sand said. “I want to do my best. I want to put everything into it.”

The “Iowa Press” episode airs on Iowa PBS Friday at 7:30 p.m. and Nov. 8 at noon. It is available to stream online.

Robin Opsahl contributed to this reporting.