Iowa First Check @IowaFirstCheck

Fact check: Companies owned by Lauridsen Group have a real environmental record in Iowa. But the ad blurs separate companies, facilities, time periods and findings. iowafirstcheck.com/fact-checks/za…

Lahn HQ @LahnHQ

23 hours ago

FACT: Rob has received $13 million from the owners of the largest privately held chemical company in Iowa. They have been repeatedly cited and fined for polluting Iowa's water. Rob Lauridsen is clearly spiraling now that the truth about him is being exposed.

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@LahnHQ Fact check: Companies owned by Lauridsen Group have a real environmental record in Iowa. But the ad blurs separate companies, facilities, time periods and findings. iowafirstcheck.com/fact-checks/za…

High diesel prices are only killing Iowa farmers? They’re killing everyone, Chuck.

Chuck Grassley @ChuckGrassley

3 days ago

W diesel $6.57 in Iowa why doesn’t Pres Trump put an embargo on diesel exports like presidents in the 70s put embargoes on ag products bc food prices were inflated. High diesel prices ARE KILLING FARMERS INCOME #cornwatch #soybeanwatch

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So @kwqcnews has denied our respectful request to receive the pre-established debate criteria. I find that to be an interesting response from a news station to a campaign that met the @IowaPress qualifications. Stay tuned.

NEW FACT CHECK: Zach Lahn’s “13 Million” ad contains real facts—and major overstatements. Sand’s family gave $13.13 million since 2018. The DNR documented illegal discharges. But the ad blurs who donated, what the company makes and what regulators found. iowafirstcheck.com/fact-checks/za…

Statement on yesterday’s #IA01 debate announcement: Our campaign was the first independent campaign in modern state history to meet the gold standard debate requirements set by @IowaPress. We promptly accepted their debate invitation in August, while @millermeeks and @BohannanIowa declined to even respond. Our campaign reached out directly to the Miller-Meeks and Bohannan campaigns multiple times in August, in an effort to arrange a debate. We were also not given the courtesy of a response. Now, suddenly, they have announced they will debate each other, only, on @kwqcnews & @KCRG in October, breaking with decades of tradition of the Iowa Press and PBS. We found about this only after it was publicly announced. We were not contacted by the networks nor did either campaign respond to our repeated inquiries. Our campaign has sent a letter to KWQC requesting inclusion and additional information including their official, predetermined debate criteria. At this time, we choose to give them the benefit of the doubt and it is my expectation that professionalism and journalistic integrity will prevail here. The voters of #IA01 deserve to hear from all three candidates on the ballot this fall, and we owe them an honest and complete representation of their options. It is clear that the two parties coordinated behind the scenes to shop this debate around, in an effort to exclude a candidate that qualified for both the ballot and the debate in historic fashion, and represents the largest voting bloc in the district. For all the vitriol spewed between the parties, see how quickly they are able to work together to maintain the status quo and silence independent voices. When people talk about a "uniparty," this is what they mean. Ultimately this situation is a perfect illustration of the reality of politics today. The parties feel that this is their seat, their government - not ours. I understand that many accept this, some may even approve of it, but this is not democracy. It’s not government of the people, by the people, and for the people.

Dr. Miller-Meeks @millermeeks

6 days ago

Iowans will have a chance to see a true contrast between common sense and crazy. Tune in!

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A new KWQC/Gray TV debate has been added, and our countdown clock now looks forward to it on Oct. 6 at 7 PM between Rob Sand and Zach Lahn. Follow the race at iowafirstcheck.com

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We have updated our polling average to include a new poll from co-efficient+. Find public polling of the race to date, as well as the methodology for our polling average which shows Rob Sand with a 4.9-point (down from +5.1) lead over Zach Lahn here: iowafirstcheck.com/polls.html

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No public record establishes that Rob Sand—or his household—has a $1 billion net worth. His wife leads a private company, but its value, ownership shares and the value of her interest are not public. @ZachLahn has cited no evidence supporting the label. iowafirstcheck.com/fact-checks/is…

Zach Lahn @ZachLahn

6 days ago

Another lie. Here’s the full quote from @bennyjohnson. But @RobSandIA is in fact a liberal billionaire.

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8/8 If you found us while searching for Iowa governor polls, Rob Sand or Zach Lahn, campaign money, policy positions, events or a campaign claim: welcome. Check the sources, download the records and make up your own mind. Tips and corrections are always welcome.

7/8 Other tools include an events calendar, digital-ad tracking and an aircraft log. That record tracks the plane—not its passengers. AI helps organize information, analyze data and build the site. A human reviews everything, adds original research and makes editorial decisions.

1/8 👋 A quick introduction to Iowa First Check. We’re an independent citizen-journalism project tracking Iowa’s 2026 governor’s race between Rob Sand and Zach Lahn. Our goal is simple: keep facts, records and context in the discussion. iowafirstcheck.com

Watch this morning's whole Q&A with reporters here: youtube.com/watch?v=zdRvuG… (staff said that would be the last Q before it was asked) Not sure how often Zach Lahn is taking reporter questions. Sand has been doing that several times a week, sometimes multiple times in one day.

Lahn HQ @LahnHQ

7 days ago

🚨 WATCH: Rob Sand was asked today if he would join Zach Lahn and support a 50% cut in the gas tax. He refused to answer the question and then ended his press conference.

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Weird for Zach Lahn to wade in here. He changed his voter registration to Iowa in Oct 2024, and his kids are growing up in another state. Lindsay James didn't grow up in Iowa but she moved to Dubuque in 2015, is raising kids there, and was first elected to #ialegis in 2018.

In the video, Rob Sand doesn't accuse religious schools of using tax dollars to buy those things. He points out that, legally, the law *doesn't stop them* from doing so. The law also doesn't allow for any auditing of the public money. Regarding Iowa City: iowafirstcheck.com/fact-checks/ro…

Lahn HQ @LahnHQ

7 days ago

🚨 DISGUSTING: At his town hall in Iowa City, Rob Sand accuses Iowa's religious schools of using tax dollars to "buy booze and go on private retreats to Florida." Iowa City is the school district that spent $38 million of your money without approval after going three years

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