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Hometown Welcome: Rob Sand and Dave Muhlbauer Host First Event Together Since LG Announcement in Western Iowa

For Immediate Release

Contact: press@robsand.com

Rob Sand for Iowa

6/11/2026

MANNING, IA – Yesterday, nominee for governor Rob Sand and candidate for lieutenant governor Dave Muhlbauer held their first joint event since Dave was announced as Rob’s running mate. Around 200 Iowans from the surrounding community attended the moderated Q&A in Manning to ask questions and hear directly from Rob and Dave about their vision to put public service over politics in Iowa. The crowd included Republicans, Democrats, and independents from across western Iowa, highlighting the broad appeal of the Sand-Muhlbauer ticket.

Learn more about the event below:

WATCH:

WHO 13: Sand holds first campaign event with running mate Dave Muhlbauer

KGAN: Rob Sand and Dave Muhlbauer Launch Event

READ:

Iowa Public Radio: Rob Sand and running mate Dave Muhlbauer make first joint stop in Iowa governor race

  • About 200 people attended the campaign stop at Level B Grill, where the two candidates took questions during a forum moderated by Doug Burns, the former co-owner of the Carroll Times Herald.

  • Muhlbauer, who farms between Manning and Manilla, is a fifth-generation farmer and the only elected Democrat in Crawford County. He is also a third-generation county supervisor, following in the footsteps of his father and grandfather, who both also served in the Iowa Legislature.

  • “The genuine care for people is just rooted in who they are, and that’s the way I approached being a supervisor and a farmer,” Muhlbauer said. “And that’s why it made it really, really easy for me to say yes to Rob, because Rob has that same genuine care that my family has.”

  • During the forum, Muhlbauer said that growing up in western Iowa shaped his view of public service. He pointed to his neighbors helping each other through difficult times, including during a winter blizzard when a friend showed up late at night to help dry newborn calves on his farm.

Des Moines Register: Rob Sand hits the campaign trail with new running mate, Dave Muhlbauer

  • Democratic governor candidate Rob Sand and his new running mate, Dave Muhlbauer, made their campaign trail debut Wednesday, June 10 — making their case to a crowded restaurant filled with Muhlbauer’s hometown supporters.

  • “To start this off in my hometown, my community, it’s just phenomenal,” Muhlbauer told reporters afterward. “I’m just very proud of this community and what they’ve done.” 

  • “(Muhlbauer) represents people from this area,” Hansohn said. “Hardworking. Honest. And no matter what political party you are, he’ll work with you.”

  • “I think most of the time people in Iowa care about two things: Do you work? And how do you treat people?” Sand said. “And if you’re working, and you’re contributing to your community, and if you treat people decently, then most of the time they think you’re going to be all right. I definitely get that from Dave. Just focused on the simple stuff. And I think we need more of that in politics.”

Radio Iowa: Sand and running mate Muhlbauer at first public appearance

  • Democratic candidate for governor Rob Sand and his running mate Dave Muhlbauer made their first public appearance together last night.

  • About 200 people attended the event in Manning, which is near Muhlbauer’s farm. Muhlbauer, who’s finishing up his second term as a county Supervisor, is the only elected Democrat in Crawford County. Muhlbauer’s nomination to be Iowa’s next lieutenant governor will be made official this Saturday by delegates at the Iowa Democratic Party’s state convention. “We’re going to stay who we are and true to that and give our message about fixing government for all people,” Muhlbauer said.

The Gazette: Sand, Muhlbauer hold first campaign event as Iowa Dem gubernatorial ticket

  • Dave Muhlbauer felt at home with the roughly 200 people packed into a restaurant in western Iowa’s Crawford County to see him and his new political colleague.

  • “Our family’s been here a long time. You guys all know us,” said Muhlbauer, a farmer and county supervisor from Manilla whom Rob Sand picked to be his running mate in Iowa’s gubernatorial election.

  • “The thing that I really take to heart with my family and their tradition is that when they talk about what they’re doing, whether it’s politics or farming or serving communities (through) public service, they just have this genuine care that they want to know that people are going to be OK, and that they can make good decisions to help them out. And the genuine care for people is just rooted in who they are,” Dave Muhlbauer said during Wednesday night’s event.

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