Iowa Democratic gubernatorial candidate Rob Sand was booed out of the Iowa State Fair after reportedly retreating into a locked bathroom stall while activists waited outside. Video from Thursday’s confrontation shows the sitting state auditor being followed through the fairgrounds as critics peppered him with questions about his record. Sand eventually entered a bathroom, remained inside for roughly 15 minutes, and left the fairgrounds after emerging to another round of boos.
The confrontation came during Sand’s appearance at one of Iowa’s most important political venues, where candidates regularly meet voters and face questions in a far less controlled environment than a campaign rally. Sand, Iowa’s only Democratic statewide officeholder, is running for the open governor’s seat in November. Republican Governor Kim Reynolds is not seeking another term, leaving Sand to face Republican businessman Zach Lahn in the general election.
The video shows Sand moving quickly through the crowd while activists affiliated with Turning Point Action follow closely behind him. Several people can be heard demanding answers from the Democrat as others boo and chant. Sand does not stop to address the questions and instead continues towards a bathroom with members of his entourage accompanying him.
According to Trending Politics News, Sand spent approximately 15 minutes behind a locked bathroom door while the activists and other fairgoers waited outside. The report said he had been confronted about his political record and past before entering the restroom. When Sand finally came back out, the crowd had not dispersed and immediately resumed questioning him.
The Democrat was met with louder boos as he emerged and began walking toward the exit. One activist accused Sand of lying and another told him that Iowa did not want a socialist as governor. Sand continued moving without engaging the people confronting him, eventually leaving the fairgrounds as the crowd followed and jeered.
Ella Mullenbach, one of the activists involved in the confrontation, posted footage of the encounter on X. “Scared @RobSandIA out of the Iowa State Fair,” she wrote. “Iowa does NOT want a socialist nor a LIAR as the governor.”
Watch Sand’s hurried exit from the Iowa State Fair here:
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Sand’s visit had begun with a more conventional campaign appearance at the Iowa Pork Producers’ Pork Tent, a customary stop for politicians attending the fair. Local outlet CBS2 Iowa reported that Sand used the stop to discuss agricultural trade and access to foreign markets. “Making sure that Iowa producers and Iowa growers can actually sell and market their goods outside of the United States, and I was telling them that I think that’s very important for us to be able to do,” Sand said.
The state auditor then attacked elected Republicans over trade policy, claiming they were putting their party ahead of Iowa farmers. “I think what’s been really frustrating for a lot of people right now is you have people who are elected only from the state of Iowa by Iowans, but when you see all these trade policies that have been really destructive for Iowa, rather than representing their state, they represent their party,” he said. Sand added that those officials “run around and say, ‘Oh, it’s gonna be great, just you watch,’ and meanwhile farmers’ income is down 50%.”
Sand enters the general-election fight after narrowly retaining his position as state auditor in 2022 by fewer than 3,000 votes. Iowa has moved firmly toward Republicans in recent elections, with President Donald Trump carrying the state by approximately 13 points in 2024 and Reynolds winning reelection by roughly 18 points in 2022.
Featured image credit: screengrab from the embedded video.