State Auditor and gubernatorial candidate Rob Sand was in Manchester on Wednesday afternoon for a town hall meeting.

Over one hundred residents gathered at Castle Theatre downtown to hear Sand speak and ask him questions about his position as State Auditor and his run for Iowa governor in 2026. 

Sand spoke with local reporters prior to his town hall, telling KMCH this was a campaign stop.

Sand says if elected, he’d be a governor for all.

Sand, a northeast Iowa native who grew up in Decorah, feels he has the experience to lead the state of Iowa. 

Sand, a member of the Democratic party, started his Manchester town hall by pointing out that there were registered Democrats, Independents and Republicans at Wednesday’s meeting. Some people have questioned which party he truly aligns with based on some of his answers at previous town halls – and Sand says “that’s good”.

Sand is nearing the end of his 100 Town Hall Tour across Iowa – Delaware County was stop #83 – and he tells KMCH he’s been hearing a common message from Iowans as he travels the state.

At Wednesday’s Delaware County town hall, residents asked Sand questions about water quality, school vouchers, healthcare access in rural Iowa, the arrest of Des Moines Schools Superintendent Ian Roberts, protecting natural resources and school shootings. Sand told the audience that he realizes if he’s elected as governor next November, that he would be working with a Republican-controlled Iowa House and Senate – and he says he’ll happily do that.

photos courtesy of Janelle Tucker/KMCH