washingtonexaminer.com · Claire Carter · September 7, 2026
Rob Sand open to independent appointee if Grassley vacates
# Iowa Democratic governor hopeful open to independent appointee if Grassley vacates
By Claire Carter
Published September 7, 2026 8:50pm ET
Iowa Democratic gubernatorial nominee Rob Sand said Monday that if he is elected in November, he would be open to appointing an independent to Sen. Chuck Grassley’s (R-IA) seat should the vacancy occur.
Sand, who is also Iowa’s state auditor, spoke with reporters while making the rounds at Labor Day celebrations in the Hawkeye State and was asked who he would choose to fill a vacancy for the seat long held by Grassley.
“Whatever the law is in the state of Iowa, I’d want to talk to a lot of different people about it and be pretty open-minded about who would go there,” Sand told Iowa’s News Now when asked how he would handle such a situation.
When pressed over whether he would choose from his own party or a Republican, Sand offered a third option.
“I’d be interested in an independent,” Sand said. “I think that we have a lot of people in this state who aren’t affiliated with either party. And yet, because we have this broken two-party system and the Democratic and Republican parties give themselves special legal privileges, they’re able to force independents out as candidates and discourage them as voters too.”
While Grassley has no plans to step down from the Senate seat he’s held since 1980, at 92 years old, there is a possibility of his seat being vacated before his term ends in 2029. Under Iowa law, the governor appoints a replacement if the vacancy occurs while the Senate is in session or if the chamber will meet before the next general election.
Appealing to independents in Iowa is a must for candidates running in statewide elections. Voters who are not affiliated with either party make up about 35% of the electorate, more than the 27% of voters who are registered as Democrats. Republicans make up about 37% of registered voters in the state.
Sand has been making moves to draw himself away from the core of the Democratic Party in recent weeks. He’s said he would not want former Vice President Kamala Harris campaigning with him and has even gone as far as to say she is not the right choice for the White House in 2028.
The race for Iowa’s governor’s office is rated as “leans Democrat” by Cook Political Report. It was rated a “toss-up” between Sand and Republican candidate Zach Lahn until Aug. 20, when the nonpartisan analyst shifted the race.
Recent polling handed Sand a slight edge over Lahn, with Emerson College Polling showing a 49%-46% split in the Democrat’s favor.