The Tale
of the Tape
Measuring which Iowa gubernatorial candidate is more "Iowa First."
The Iowa Governor Debate
Iowa PBS Governor Debate
Rob Sand and Zach Lahn meet at 7 p.m. on Iowa PBS. Watch it here.
Watch Rob Sand and Zach Lahn answer questions from Iowa reporters.
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Before the debate
★ Campaign Activity Round ★
★ Iowa County Event Map ★
Which candidate has held more publicly reported campaign events in each county. How this is counted →
Hover or select a county for details.
Events are included when they were publicly announced by a campaign, local organization or another public source—something an ordinary person had an opportunity to learn about. Private events are not counted. Full methodology →
★ The Polling Round ★
9 polls meet our standard. Sand leads in all 9. The average gives more weight to newer polls and likely-voter polls.
Rob Sand
48.1%
Zach Lahn
43.2%
Polls measure where voters stood when they were contacted. The full page shows the wiggle room and methods behind each result.
★ The Money Round ★
Fundraising periods begin on each candidate's campaign-announcement date (Lahn: November 6, 2025, Sand: May 12, 2025). Cash on hand and debt are each committee's most recent disclosure snapshot (filed July 20, 2026 / July 20, 2026), not a running total.
Next campaign finance report (October 19 Report, covering July 15 – October 14, 2026) is due October 19, 2026 by 4:30 PM. Source: Iowa Ethics & Campaign Disclosure Board.
★ Where They Stand ★
Zach Lahn
Opposes increases in Iowa's sales, income and property taxes and has said eliminating the state income tax should be a long-term goal. Proposes reducing taxes through government savings, offering housing-related tax rebates to young Iowans and increasing taxes on institutional property owners.
Rob Sand
Supports raising Iowa's minimum wage to $12 an hour. Proposes caregiver tax credits, limits on certain utility fees, interest-free down-payment assistance and new revenue from regulated adult-use cannabis and ending data-center tax exemptions. He has said he does not believe broad tax increases would be necessary.
Zach Lahn
Supports continuing education savings accounts for private-school expenses. Proposes "innovation zones" giving educators and administrators more flexibility, reducing standardized testing, increasing the share of Iowa residents admitted to Iowa State University and the University of Iowa, and revoking teaching licenses for what he describes as political indoctrination.
Rob Sand
Proposes universal all-day prekindergarten and universal meals in public schools. Supports retaining the private-school voucher program with income limits, annual audits, restrictions on tuition increases and greater oversight of the company administering the program.
Zach Lahn
Has said Iowa should maintain a reliable Medicaid delivery system, provide dependable care and ensure prompt payment to providers. He has said concerns he previously raised about Medicaid expansion were largely addressed by federal changes. No detailed proposal changing Iowa's current Medicaid administration has been published.
Rob Sand
Proposes beginning to reverse Iowa's privatized Medicaid system through executive action. Also proposes a prescription-drug review board, restrictions on pharmacy benefit managers, broader telehealth coverage, expanded surprise-billing protections, medical-debt relief and caregiver tax credits.
Zach Lahn
Proposes independent state testing of products used in Iowa, incentives for farmers to reduce runoff, antitrust action against large agricultural-input companies and redirecting university research toward cancer and agricultural problems. He opposes legal immunity for chemical manufacturers and the use of eminent domain for private projects.
Rob Sand
Proposes expanded water monitoring, publicly accessible manure-management plans, conservation tax credits, water-quality alerts, greater radon testing, wetland expansion and a Cabinet-level cancer task force. He opposes chemical-company immunity and eminent domain for carbon-capture pipelines.
Zach Lahn
Proposes banning Wall Street hedge funds from buying single-family homes, increasing property taxes on institutional investors and providing tax rebates or down-payment assistance to young Iowans who stay in or return to Iowa. He also proposes selling land found to be illegally owned by China to young families and veterans.
Rob Sand
Proposes banning hedge funds and large LLCs from buying excessive amounts of Iowa land, taxing out-of-state landowners at a higher rate and simplifying housing permits and inspections. He also supports interest-free down-payment assistance, restrictions on algorithmic rent price-fixing and a rural housing task force.
Zach Lahn
Supports a temporary moratorium while the state establishes minimum rules. He says counties should retain permitting authority and data centers should receive no property-tax abatements, pay their own costs and comply with environmental protections. He has also proposed taxing large data centers at five times the normal property-tax rate.
Rob Sand
Proposes ending state tax breaks for data centers and requiring companies to cover infrastructure and utility costs. He also supports public disclosure of water use, energy use, employment and wages; public hearings; local approval; setback requirements; and the use of Iowa union labor for construction.
Zach Lahn
Says life should be legally protected from conception to natural death. His campaign also says transgender surgeries and related drugs should not be allowed in Iowa, but no detailed proposal defining the age or scope of that policy was located. He proposes denying state benefits to undocumented immigrants and preventing state government and universities from using H-1B workers for jobs he says Iowans can perform.
Rob Sand
Proposes legalizing and regulating adult-use cannabis for people 21 and older. He has said he would veto legislation he characterizes as "culture war" policy and specifically says he would oppose additional restrictions affecting contraception, IVF, surrogacy and health care providers. No detailed abortion proposal was located on his campaign website.
Zach Lahn
Supports further limiting the governor's emergency powers and transferring more authority to counties and municipalities. He says Iowa should challenge federal regulations in court when he believes agencies have exceeded their authority. He also says state contracts should prioritize Iowa companies and workers.
Rob Sand
Proposes one public primary open to all voters, with up to four candidates advancing to a general election using approval voting. His plans also include restoring the state auditor's authority, stronger whistleblower protections, restrictions on stock trading by elected officials, term and age limits, candidate fitness and civics requirements, and mandatory public town halls.
These summaries do not predict whether a proposal would work as described.
Fact Checks
Campaign claims checked against public records, campaign materials and published reporting.
11 claims reviewed
See the fact-check scorecard →
★ The Aircraft Record ★
Public flight data for tail number N512MM, registered to Buckeye Creek Ventures LLC of Belle Plaine. Since Zach Lahn entered the governor's race on November 6, 2025, the aircraft's recorded overnight locations have included Iowa, Kansas and other places.
123 flight(s) recorded since campaign announcement
The records track the plane—not Zach Lahn. They do not establish who was aboard, why a flight occurred or where any person spent the night.