Meet Rob
Rob Sand was born and raised in Decorah – home to the Vikings and some of the best pizza in the state. Rob’s roots in Iowa span generations – his dad’s family has been in Winneshiek County since getting off the boat from Norway. Rob grew up fishing and hunting in the area with his dad, and found his passion for public service during high school working to get a skatepark built in his community. Growing up in small-town Iowa will always be an important part of who Rob is.
Rob started his career in public service as an Assistant Iowa Attorney General and Iowa’s chief public corruption prosecutor, locking up scammers, taxpayer abusers, and thieves, as well as violent criminals and well over a dozen sexually violent predators – putting away some of the worst of Iowa’s sexual offenders. He prosecuted all criminal cases related to the Iowa Film Office tax credit scandal and numerous crooked politicians – from both parties. He also uncovered and prosecuted the largest lottery rigging scheme in American history, which he wrote about in his true crime book, The Winning Ticket.
The people of Iowa have elected Rob twice as State Auditor, first in 2018, defeating an incumbent Republican and becoming the first Democrat to hold the office since the 1960s, and again in 2022 where he was the only Democrat reelected statewide. Since taking office, Rob has served as a trusted leader and government watchdog with a record of rooting out waste, fraud, and abuse, holding members of both parties accountable, and doing what’s right for Iowans. In his first term as Auditor, Rob uncovered more waste, fraud, and abuse in a single term than any other State Auditor in Iowa history, and has uncovered more than $29 million in misspent money since taking office.
Additionally, in his first term Rob coined PIE – the Public Innovations and Efficiencies program, which awards cities, counties, and school districts across the state for their efficiency efforts. Rob’s program is so effective that all Iowa counties are participants, and it has been copied in two other states – including by the Republican State Auditor of Mississippi.
Rob works with both parties to get things done for Iowans. In the State Auditor’s Office, Rob had both an Independent and a Republican in senior leadership positions, and promoted – not fired – employees who made campaign contributions to his political opponents. For Rob, it’s not about right versus left, but right versus wrong, and he always stands up for what’s right, even when he stands alone. Rob has brought Iowans together from across the state – and across party lines – who believe in his vision for a better Iowa, and are standing with him as he takes his fight to the governor’s office.
As governor, Rob will lower costs and protect taxpayer dollars, restore the public’s trust in our government, continue rooting out corruption, and fight to improve the lives of Iowa families and solve some of our toughest challenges. He’ll work to create more opportunities for Iowans across the state and help Iowa families not just get by, but thrive and live healthy lives.
When he’s not busy working for Iowans and fighting corruption, you can find Rob bowhunting, fishing, biking, spending time with his family, or taste-auditing pizza at the nearest Casey’s. Rob and his wife Christine have two sons and a dog, Pow.