So many Iowa candidate announcements

May 12 edition of "KHOI's Capitol Week"

On left: Rob Sand from the video launching his campaign for governor. On right: Randy Feenstra photo from his political Facebook page

It’s a week for multi-tasking: I was engrossed in the Iowa Senate debate on eminent domain right up until I had to join the Zoom meeting for our live show. Spencer Dirks and I focused on Iowa’s 2026 campaigns this week and will probably spend most of next Monday’s show wrapping up the legislature’s 2025 session (if they finish this week, as many expect).

Let’s get right to it: the sound file from our May 12 show is embedded at the top of this message. If you mainly want to listen, can also subscribe to “KHOI’s Capitol Week” on any podcast platform, or find it through smart speakers. If you do subscribe on Apple Podcasts, Spotify, Amazon Music, etc., please rate and review us. The full show archive (going back to February 2021) is available on KHOI’s website.

For those who would rather read than listen, here’s your written recap.

Rob Sand launches campaign for governor

Surprising absolutely no one, State Auditor Rob Sand confirmed on Monday morning that he’s running for governor. He said he won’t run as a “party-line guy” and the race isn’t about whether Iowa is “bluer or redder,” but about making the state “truer and better.”

Sand’s been holding town halls in all 99 counties for years. I explained why I think those visits are important and could help his campaign.

Unlike most Democratic candidates, Sand frequently references his faith in public remarks. I wrote about that last summer, and I expect we’ll hear much more on that front.

We also talked about how Sand responds to criticism of the huge campaign contributions he has received from family members ($7 million from his wife and in-laws during 2024). He emphasized that he’s received tens of thousands of grassroots donations, and told me during a Monday afternoon interview that the governor’s race will come down to two candidates: one whose biggest donor is their family, and the other whose biggest donor is special interest groups.

You can watch the whole interview here:

Sand’s strong fundraising, combined with Governor Kim Reynolds’ decision not to seek a third term, will get national groups more interested in this race.

Although Sand is almost certain to win the Democratic nomination, he may have competition in the 2026 primary. We mentioned on our April 28 show that Julie Stauch, a longtime campaign operative, has filed paperwork to form a governor’s campaign committee. Although Stauch hasn’t made any official announcement, I saw on Monday that she has a fundraising page set up on a site called GoodChange.

Randy Feenstra takes first step toward running for governor

The Iowa Writers’ Collaborative's own Dave Price wrote over the weekend that U.S. Representative Randy Feenstra may run for governor next year instead of for re-election to Congress. And on Monday, Feenstra filed a statement of organization with the Iowa Ethics and Campaign Disclosure Board to run for governor.

I explained why I’m skeptical that Feenstra can win a statewide primary for governor against anyone with closer ties to President Donald Trump. I don’t know who would be his base. He has little experience with competitive races, rarely holds public meetings with his constituents, and only received about 60 percent of the vote against a little-known primary challenger in 2024.

One potential selling point for Feenstra, if he runs: as a member of the House Ways and Means Committee, he may be able to brag about the work he did to help extend Trump’s tax cuts. (That assumes Republicans get a budget reconciliation bill over the finish line this year.)

Side note: I saw some headlines saying Feenstra had “filed” to run for governor. Technically, he filed paperwork to create a campaign committee for the governor’s race. The window for Iowa candidates to file nominating papers for any state or federal office will open in late February 2026. I point this out because every cycle, some candidates announce that they’re running for something and end up not filing for that office. Feenstra has a long time to decide whether he really is running for governor or for re-election to Congress. As of Monday, his social media feeds don’t list him as a candidate for governor.

As for other possible GOP candidates for governor, I mentioned former State Representative Brad Sherman, Attorney General Brenna Bird, U.S. Ambassador to NATO Matt Whitaker, and State Senator Mike Bousselot. (If Bird runs for governor, I expect Bousselot to pivot and run for attorney general.)

Konfrst becomes second Democrat running in IA-03

On Thursday, State Representative Jennifer Konfrst made it official: she is running for Congress in Iowa’s third district. I gave listeners some background on Konfrst and key themes of her campaign.

We had talked about State Senator Sarah Trone Garriott’s Congressional campaign on last week’s show. This primary is shaping up to be somewhat unusual in that the candidates don’t have any clear differences on policies or voting records. So Trone Garriott’s central message is to draw contrasts based on electability.

I wrote a deep dive about the IA-03 Democratic primary over the weekend.

Although there’s plenty of time for other Democrats to get into the race against U.S. Representative Zach Nunn, I don’t know of anyone actively considering it now. State Representative Austin Baeth told me last week he will seek a third term in the Iowa House.

Ryan Melton running again in IA-04

Ryan Melton ran against Feenstra in the fourth Congressional district in 2022 and 2024, and he confirmed on Friday that he’s running again. He posted on social media, “The 4th District is being left behind—by corrupt corporate interests, a Republican party that no longer listens to its own voters, and by an incumbent in Randy Feenstra who refuses to show up for us and who is beholden to the billionaires.”

I suspect Melton will be unopposed for the nomination in this very red district. The Democrat has focused on building a grassroots movement across the district and will continue to speak out against eminent domain and the CO2 pipeline, against corporate money in politics, and for recruiting other Democratic candidates for down-ballot offices.

We could have an interesting GOP primary here if Feenstra does run for governor. I’m trying to reach former U.S. Representative Steve King to see if he may run for Congress again.

Nate Willems running for attorney general

We don’t yet know Attorney General Brenna Bird’s plans for 2026, but a Democrat did enter the chat last week. Nate Willems said in launching his campaign, “Iowans deserve an attorney general focused on protecting Iowans and standing up for our fundamental rights and freedoms. As attorney general, I’ll work to keep communities safe by holding violent criminals accountable and I’ll take on corporations who try to rip off Iowans by price gouging or stealing their hard-earned wages.”

I first met Willems before he was elected to the Iowa House in 2008. He served two terms, then ran unsuccessfully for the Iowa Senate in 2012.

We’ve never had anyone run for AG on a promise to crack down on crimes against Iowa workers, like non-payment of wages or workers’ comp. Wage theft alone has been estimated to cost Iowa workers about $900 million a year. Willems is extremely knowledgeable about these problems, and I’m curious to see whether he can get traction with this message.

I interviewed Willems last week and hope to get that piece online soon. It has been an absurdly busy week for legislative and campaign news!

Chris Cournoyer running for state auditor

We mentioned two weeks ago that Lieutenant Governor Chris Cournoyer had taken the first step toward running for state auditor in 2026. She made that official last week, and came out of the gate with Governor Reynolds’ endorsement. Republicans are not going to take this one for granted: in 2022, a virtual unknown (Todd Halbur) won the GOP primary for auditor against the establishments’s preferred candidate (Mary Ann Hanusa).

Reynolds claimed Cournoyer’s background in technology “makes her an ideal watchdog every Iowan can trust,” while Cournoyer said in a statement, “It’s time for an Auditor who prioritizes transparency, efficiency, and results over headlines and partisanship.”

That prompted Rob Sand’s campaign to release this statement: “Auditor Sand is proud of creating a tri-partisan leadership team that has always included people who contributed to his 2018 opponent, the government efficiency program they created, and the fact that they uncovered a record amount of misspent money in his first term before Senator Cournoyer and others created a new law that gutted their ability to find misspent money.”

By the way, I asked Sand on Monday whether he would ask the legislature to repeal that 2023 law that hamstrung the state auditor’s office if he’s elected governor. He said he would, and predicted the legislature would become “very interested in accountability” if the governor were from the other party.

No Democrat has publicly disclosed plans to run for state auditor, but at least one person is seriously considering the race. We may learn more in the coming months.

Sand warns of “fiscal time bomb”

In his official role last Wednesday, Sand issued an advisory warning about Iowa's "fiscal time bomb." He cited declining tax revenues and accelerating spending: for the fiscal year that begins on July 1, Republicans plan to use approximately $900 million from the state's surplus and reserve funds to cover ongoing expenses.

When I interviewed Sand on Monday, I asked how he would defuse this time bomb, given that the biggest factors (tax cuts and the school voucher spending) are locked in, and increased federal funding through the American Rescue Plan is about to run out. Sand cited two things: first, "Treat marijuana the same way that we treat alcohol." Currently Iowans are spending money in neighboring states "to get what they want."

Second, Sand said Iowa could be using surplus funds to implement government efficiency measures. He said those two examples would "get us a long way" toward solving the problem.

USDA approves governor’s summer food pilot project

The governor’s office announced last Wednesday that the U.S. Department of Agriculture has approved Iowa’s request to run a demonstration project that provides food boxes to families over the summer months. I explained the key differences between what the state plans to do (which the Biden administration’s USDA rejected) and the Summer EBT or “Sun Bucks” program that would provide $40 per child, per month to all families whose kids qualify for free or reduced-price school lunches.

The Iowa Hunger Coalition said in a statement, “We appreciate additional resources being directed to help address food insecurity for children over the summer in Iowa. However, many questions remain as to the details of how the pilot program will function. We are concerned about the barriers families may face in accessing this new program and the additional strain it could place on feeding organizations who are already experiencing record-breaking levels of need.”

Iowa legislative maneuvering over budget, eminent domain

On Thursday, House and Senate leaders announced a deal over the state budget for fiscal year 2026. The governor is on board with the compromise.

I don’t like to throw out a lot of numbers on the air, because it’s hard for listeners to follow. The Cedar Rapids Gazette published details on planned spending in various areas of state government. The deal is closer to what the governor and Senate leaders wanted for general fund spending, but House Republicans were able to get some of their priorities (such as $14 million for paraeducator pay) funded through sports gambling revenue.

The Senate spent much of last week tied up in knots over eminent domain. A House-approved bill was on the debate calendar for Friday, but after hours of caucuses, Senate leaders didn’t bring it to the floor. That prompted pipeline opponents in the gallery to shout, “Shame!” which made Senate President Amy Sinclair angry.

Twelve Republican senators have said they won’t approve any budget bills until the chamber takes up eminent domain. Shortly before Spencer and I went on the air, the Senate began debate on the bill and voted down Republican Mike Bousselot’s amendment. I’ve never seen that happen in the Senate during the nine years of this GOP trifecta. Bousselot’s amendment would have allowed Summit Carbon Solutions to build its pipeline but restricted eminent domain for the future.

After our show, Senate debate continued late into the evening. They did finally pass the pipeline bill (House File 639) with no amendments. You can read more about the debate in the Des Moines Register, Iowa Capital Dispatch, and the Cedar Rapids Gazette. The bill now goes to the governor’s desk. I can’t imagine Reynolds signing it, but after what I just watched in the Senate, who knows?

The chambers debated lots of other bills on Monday, but none of them are must-pass like the budget. We will cover the details on next week’s show.

House Democrats elect Brian Meyer as next leader

We had time for one more legislative story: on Thursday, Iowa House Democrats picked State Representative Brian Meyer to be the next minority leader. Jennifer Konfrst is stepping down from that role to focus on running for Congress.

Meyer has worked in and around the legislature for a long time. He was first elected to the House in 2013 and worked on House Democratic staff for seven years before then. He was chief of staff for Majority Leader Kevin McCarthy during the four years of the Democratic trifecta (2007 to 2010).

He told reporters “we need to talk about kitchen table issues” and the economy. He plans for Democrats to be “a little more aggressive” in their approach to floor debate. They will offer more amendments to showcase their own proposals.

Meyer also said the caucus would be more “decentralized,” with different members who are subject matter experts speaking to the media about those topics (for instance, State Representative Tracy Ehlert on early childhood education and State Representative Dave Jacoby on property taxes).

I wrote more about Meyer at Bleeding Heartland. That post includes the video of his remarks to reporters, his plans for regaining House seats in smaller cities, and my thoughts on the biggest challenge he will face: raising enough money for Democrats to compete in battleground races next year.

Thanks so much for reading and subscribing! Spencer and I will be back next week.