More Dominoes Falling
It was hardly a surprise that Democrat state auditor Rob Sand announced yesterday he was running for governor. That’s been the presumption for some time, it was just down to the timing.
His announcement comes just more than a year before any primary election, although Sand’s candidacy may well pre-empt the field given the fact that he has won two statewide elections already and has amassed a large campaign war chest.
Last week, GOP Lt. Gov. Chris Cournoyer declared her candidacy for auditor, Sand’s current job; that might have affected his timetable, because if the Democrats hope to hold on to the seat, the sooner they get folks in the race now that there’s a Republican running, the better.
Sand has portrayed himself as above-partisanship and as a watchdog for accountability…not only while in his current office, but as a prosecutor before that.
News also leaked yesterday that Congressman Randy Feenstra of Iowa’s fourth district is going to make a run for the GOP nomination. Two members of the congressional delegation—Mariannette Miller-Meeks and Ashley Hinson—previously said they were not running; the other, Zach Nunn, told us on KXEL all options are on the table. Plus there are plenty of folks in the Iowa statehouse—both the legislature and in statewide office—mulling over a run.
Feenstra’s name has come up before as a possible successor to Sen. Charles Grassley should he not run again in 2028. Sure, he’d be 95 then, but never count out anything where Grassley is concerned, and I mean that as a positive statement.
Others in the Iowa congressional delegation have their eyes on the Grassley seat, but supposedly party poo-bahs fear Democrats could flip those seats blue if the Republican incumbent leaves for another race. No such concern in Iowa’s deep red fourth district, which is in part why some smart money was betting on Feenstra to shift to Senate someday.
But that did not take into account Kim Reynolds declining a run in 2026. All bets are off, since these are obviously jobs that only come open once in a generation—if that.
Looks for many more dominoes to fall between now and Independence Day…folks sticking where they are, folks shifting to a different race. That’s the only prediction worth making.
