Rob Sand Keeps 100 Town Hall Tour Rolling, Making Stops in Northwestern Iowa

DES MOINES, IA — This week, nominee for governor Rob Sand continued his annual 100 Town Hall Tour, making stops in Dickinson, Osceola, Lyon, Plymouth, Sioux, Kossuth, Winnebago, and Hancock counties.

Iowans across the state are showing up in growing numbers for Rob’s 100 Town Hall Tour, bringing their questions, concerns, and ideas directly to the conversation. While career political operative and Kansas carpetbagger Zach Lahn stood with Kim Reynolds and pledged to continue the failed status quo of the last decade, Rob is traveling Iowa, taking unscripted questions and giving straight answers about how to move our state forward. Rob believes leadership starts with listening — which is why he’ll continue showing up for Iowans of all political stripes and working to make Iowa not redder or bluer, but better and truer.

Learn more about Rob’s stops in Dickinson, Osceola, Lyon, Plymouth, Sioux, Kossuth, Winnebago, and Hancock County below:

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KAAL: Rob Sand pushes election reform at Winnebago County town hall

KTTC: Democratic gubernatorial candidate Rob Sand stops in Forest City as part of 100-town hall tour

KCAU: Rob Sand’s tour stops in Sibley

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Sioux County Radio: Rob Sand Brings 100 Town Hall Tour to Sioux County

Democratic gubernatorial nominee and current Iowa State Auditor Rob Sand made his Sioux County stop on his 100 Town Hall Tour Thursday evening, answering questions from reporters before the event and later taking questions from audience members during a Sioux County town hall at the Sioux Center Public Library. Organizers said more than 100 people attended the event.
Before the town hall began, Sioux County Radio asked Sand why he continues bringing his annual town hall tour to one of Iowa’s most Republican counties. According to the Sioux County Auditor’s Office, Republicans make up roughly 72% of Sioux County’s active registered voters.
“I think it’s important for people to have access to their candidates and their elected officials. And it doesn’t matter if you agree or disagree with me. I also think there’s a lot of people who have more recently been voting more for the opposite party, who are starting to notice their pockets are getting picked a little bit, and starting to notice that a lot of the stuff getting done in Des Moines is really for special interest groups and insiders. They’re looking for somebody that’s willing to look them in the eye and say, ‘We might disagree on some stuff, but I think we can get government focused on you again.’”
One of Sand’s central themes throughout the evening was his belief that Iowa would benefit from greater political balance after a decade of Republican control in state government. Comparing politics to a concept familiar to many northwest Iowa residents, Sand argued that even good ideas can become less effective when one party holds power for too long.
Following the town hall, Sioux County Radio spoke with Brock Lehman, a registered Republican, social studies teacher at Sioux Center High School, and attendee at Thursday’s event.
“I wish more people were more involved in the political system. I wish more people would take the time to have an opportunity like this to say, ‘Okay, well here’s a candidate who’s running for governor. Why isn’t everybody here? Why don’t we have a thousand people here? Why don’t we have five thousand people here? Don’t just vote just because you’re going to show up to vote, or don’t not vote at all. Be involved.

Northwest Iowa Review: Sand hosts Rock Rapids town hall in search of ‘better and truer’ state

Calling Iowa’s political system “broken,” Democratic gubernatorial candidate Rob Sand discussed water quality, education, state finances and other issues during a town hall gathering Wednesday afternoon at the Rock Rapids Public Library.
“I go pretty much everywhere as often as I can to talk to Iowans,” Sand said. “It’s an important thing to do, both for people to hear from me but also for me to hear from people.”
He said many of the issues facing Iowa persist because elected officials are not required to solve problems to remain in office.
“One thing will unite every single one of those questions,” Sand said. “It’s as bad as it is, and it’s as big of a problem as it is, because politicians don’t have to solve our problems to get re-elected.”
Throughout the event, Sand emphasized the need for cooperation between Democrats, Republicans and independent voters. He said government functions best when people with different viewpoints work together.

Le Mars Sentinel: Sand brings campaign for governor to Le Mars

Iowa gubernatorial candidate and Iowa State Auditor Rob Sand brought his 100 Town Hall Tour to Le Mars on Thursday, July 9.
“When you are making sure that different viewpoints are included, you are assured the final solution is something that the vast majority of people are going to look at and say that’s better than what we are doing now and makes a lot of sense.”
“I want to have smart development in Iowa that benefits Iowans. If data centers are going to be here and they are going to pay full freight, if they are going to keep taxes low and utility rates low, then we should want that kind of development. We don’t want them here if they are just treating our state as a commodity,” Sand said.
“I am practical. I know I will be working with a Republican legislature and that is fine by me. So, what we should do is the stuff that the vast majority of people agree is a good idea.”

Opinion-Tribune: Rob Sand Campaigns In Mills County During ‘100 Town Hall Tour’

Iowa State Auditor and Democratic candidate for governor Rob Sand made a campaign stop in Mills County last week as part of his “100 Town Hall Tour” across the state.
“I think we are overdue to return to our Iowa tradition and heritage politically, which is divided government,” he said. “Nobody gets everything they want, but the stuff that gets done is the stuff that people from both parties say, ‘You know what, that actually makes more sense than what we’re doing now. A broken clock is right twice a day and I’m glad you contributed to this.’
“I’m running for governor because after we found a record amount of misspent money and Iowans worked together to re-elect me (state auditor), the folks in Des Moines said, ‘Hey, the folks in the auditor’s office are really doing their jobs, somebody better stop them’ and they passed a law to make it harder for us to find misspent tax dollars.”
“I want to do the single biggest wetlands and grazing land restoration project that has ever been seen,” he said. “When you look at studies, there’s lots of things that we can do – buffer zone, we can do bioreactors, we can do cover crops. These are good things - we should want more of them, but a bioreactor has to get rebuilt every 10-20 years, which means we’re just putting more money into it. A wetland, if it’s well built doesn’t. A wetland also provides recreational opportunities for all of us – we can hunt, we can fish, we can float. We can just be out there and enjoy nature. If we can do that, it’s something that can have tremendous impact, but it’s also going to have a broad basis of support, because guess what? When I talk to people who also like to hunt and fish like I do, they go, ‘More wetlands, that’s a great idea.’”