Republican Nominee for Governor, Zach Lahn

Kay Henderson

The 2026 race for Iowa governor is expected to be one of the most competitive gubernatorial races in the country. We'll talk with Republican nominee Zach Lahn on this edition of Iowa Press.

Announcer

Funding for Iowa Press was provided by Friends, the Iowa PBS Foundation.

The Bob and Doreen Sheppard Family. Proud supporters of educational programing seen only on Iowa PBS.

Banking in Iowa goes beyond transactions. Banks work to help people and small businesses succeed. And Iowa banks are committed to building confident banking relationships. Iowa banks, your partner through it all.

Announcer

For decades, Iowa Press has brought you political leaders and newsmakers from across Iowa and beyond. Celebrating more than 50 years on statewide Iowa PBS, this is the Friday, July 10th edition of Iowa Press. Here is Kay Henderson.

Kay Henderson

Our guest on this edition of Iowa Press grew up in Sioux City. He went to college in Colorado. He worked on some congressional campaigns. He worked for the politically influential group Americans for Prosperity. He bought his grandparents farm near Belle Plaine. He founded a private school in Kansas, and he moved back to Iowa in 2023. Most notably, in June, he won the Republican primary for governor. Zach Lahn, welcome back to Iowa Press.

Zach Lahn

Good to be here again.

Kay Henderson

Also joining our conversation is Brianne Pfannenstiel of the Des Moines Register.

Brianne Pfannenstiel

Welcome back. On June 2nd, you won the nomination. Last Friday, you had your first kind of campaign, public style speech in Tama. What have you been doing the last couple of weeks to set yourself up for the general election?

Zach Lahn

You know, we've been traveling around the state. We've been visiting with voters, going to county fairs. We're getting ready for our town halls that are coming up as well. But really, what we've been doing is putting in place the infrastructure that's needed to be able to win the campaign. You know, my opponent has been campaigning for governor probably for eight years and is one of the wealthiest people running for office right now. So we've been also building the funds necessary to be able to win in November and have a grassroots campaign across the state.

Brianne Pfannenstiel

Now, I assume part of that work is also sitting down with various groups throughout the primary race. A big focus of your campaign has been about the negative effects of big Ag on the state, and you've acknowledged along the way that it might ruffle some feathers. Have you sat down with any of those groups yet? And what has the reception been like for you?

Zach Lahn

Yeah, we've had some great meetings with these groups. Also great meetings with individual farmers. We have a large coalition of people that are coming together, and I think people really understand the issue here. You know, there's a difference between what's happening on the ground with farming and what's happening at the larger level with these companies that have consolidated and are really exploiting farmers on prices. And so as we tell our message and talk to people about the future that we see for Iowa agriculture, one in which young people can get back on farms, one in which you don't have to off farm income job, or that you can help to revive your rural community. We're finding that it resonates with more and more people, and people are really tired of the corporate capture, the conglomerates that are really exploiting the farmers on the ground and help and taking away the optionality that farmers have to have choice in the marketplace. So we're getting a good reception, but we have a long ways to go to meet with more people.

Kay Henderson

Speaking of farmers, one of the decisions you've made in the past few weeks is to choose State Representative Derek Wulf as your running mate. What, in your view, has prepared him to potentially be Iowa's next governor?

Zach Lahn

Well, as Iowa’s next lieutenant governor, I think what's really prepared him is one, experience in the legislature. Number two is hands on experience with farming and ranching and understanding the struggles that farmers are going through right now. He has been what I call an Iowa first warrior. He's put forward bills to help promote more food grown in Iowa, served in our public schools. He's put forward legislation that says that if you're a company that's receiving tax breaks from the state of Iowa and you cut jobs, you're not eligible for those tax breaks anymore. He's been big on the right to repair legislation that farmers have been asking for for a very long time. So I think what he brings to the table is a good experience in those issues, and also an understanding of the legislative process.

Kay Henderson

He raises cattle, corn and hay on his farm. How does that compare and contrast to the farms that you manage?

Zach Lahn

Yeah. So we raise in our farm, we have a five crop rotation. We have organic corn, soybeans, oats and alfalfa. And I just added in einkorn this this season because my wife really likes to bake sourdough bread and pancakes and things like that. And so I think the idea here is that we need a lot of diverse options for farmers to be able to tap into to help increase farm income, because the long term goal that we're looking for here is how do we help farmers make more money, live longer, healthier lives, and pass their farms down to their kids? Because right now we have a tremendous amount of extraction that's happening from our state. And a lot of our land is now owned by people who don't even live here. So I think it's a diverse array of options that we need to be looking at. And there's a good amount of experience on this ticket for both sides.

Brianne Pfannenstiel

Your opponent is on the campaign trail and on TV right now. He's spending a lot of time talking about the time you're spending in Kansas as a result of your blended family. When you and I talked about this last May, you told me, quote, if I'm elected governor, it would be a different arrangement. So what would that arrangement look like if you are indeed elected?

Zach Lahn

Well, it's this first step back and be clear about what we're talking about here. My opponent has chosen to make this campaign about personal attacks against me and specifically my children. I've been talking about issues. You all have covered me talking about issues this entire campaign. I was probably the candidate that talked about his opponents the least in the primary, because I'm trying to put forward a better vision for the people of Iowa, what we can become. On the other hand, Rob Sand has mentioned personally, and let me just be very clear here. He is a candidate for the governorship of Iowa, and he has personally mentioned my children, my minor children, many, many times on video, on the campaign trail. It's not an Iowa value that we hold. You know, this is something that is off limits, that's been known to be off limits for a very long time. And he's choosing to make his campaign about my children. And I believe the people of Iowa don't agree with that type of a campaign. And I will tell you that we have actually even gotten to the point where we have had instances where police have had to be involved because he's giving his supporters explicit permission to talk about my children. This is wrong. It's not an Iowa value, and it's not something that should be on his campaign. A grown man should not be talking about the minor children of his opponent. That is wrong. And I would just say that Iowa voters, as they get to know this more, will see that. And we'll be telling the story about our Iowa roots and our values. And I believe that will resonate.

Brianne Pfannenstiel

And what do you say to the voters, though, who do have some concerns about you, not about your children, but that you will necessarily be distracted more than somebody who is not splitting their time between responsibilities in two different states.

Zach Lahn

Yes, a completely unfounded lie that my opponent is putting forward. Anybody that runs for governor has sacrifices. They have to make everybody, and oftentimes family situations are difficult because it's a job that requires a lot. This, my arrangements, my children, just like anybody else, will have no effect on my ability to be the governor of Iowa. I've been very clear on that. He knows this. He knows that's the case. He knows that we are full time Iowans. He knows that my wife and I live in Iowa, and he knows we have a blended family, and we have a parenting agreement. And it's something that many Iowans face. And we do the best we're able to do with good co-parenting relationships, and we'll be able to continue doing that in the future. But this will have no effect on my ability to govern. But again, I'll just go back to this. He is choosing to make this campaign about my children, because any travel is only about the children. And he knows this, yet he's still continuing to push on it.

Kay Henderson

You flew to every one of the four district conventions that Republicans held this spring yourself in your plane, because you have a pilot's license. In Iowa, there was a tragedy in 1954 when Governor Beardsley died in a traffic accident. Ever since, state troopers have been driving governors. If you're elected, will troopers be flying you?

Zach Lahn

You know, it's something I haven't even thought about yet. Just be very be very open with you. I do know that we do have state troopers that are pilots. Actually, some have reached out to me and said they do look forward to working with me should I become governor. And I think we have a rich history of aviation in our state. Both of my grandpas were pilots. One was a pilot for the Iowa Public service in Iowa. The other one was a pilot for Viti Industries out of, I believe, Denison. He was a corporate pilot. I've been flying since I was a little kid. I got my pilot's license in Webster City. I'll tell you, I will always be a pilot and I will always fly. But you know, I haven't even really got that far to think about that part of part of it yet.

Kay Henderson

Also, I'm wondering, as we talked earlier, as I talked earlier, you founded a school called Wonder in Kansas, and the focus is on doing rather than memorizing, as I understand it. Right?

Zach Lahn

Yeah. Hands on learning for sure.

Kay Henderson

And there are no tests. Is that your vision for Iowa public Schools?

Zach Lahn

You know, my vision for Iowa Public Schools is one in which teachers and superintendents have far more flexibility. You know, I think talking about education, it's good for us to just back up and understand where we're at with education in the state of Iowa. You know, I've been very vocal that I believe that the education savings accounts are a foundational freedom for Iowa's families. Parents deserve to have more say over their kids go to school and where their tax dollars are spent. My opponent, on the other hand, is looking at our public school rankings, being in the bottom half, and he wants to say to Iowa's families that they shouldn't have choice in where they go. I wholeheartedly disagree with that idea, but when it comes to the actual model of schooling, there are a tremendous amount of great models of schools out there that are serving kids with different needs. And the people that know this the best are Iowa's teachers. Many of these teachers coming out of our teaching colleges at year one, 2 or 3 are leaving the profession. And the reason they are is because they know what's possible. You know, I've actually trained public school teachers in some of our schools. And I remember a couple of times I'd have teachers come in for a day in the life at the schools, and they'd leave with tears in their eyes saying, this is exactly what kids deserve. But there's no way I could do this in my school. So my vision is to help take down the red tape, to help free up teachers to have more flexible options in how they teach, and superintendents to create concurrent tracks, to try different models of schooling, and let parents opt into that. And I think if we have a marketplace of those ideas, it will lift the boat on public education. And also, by the way, it will give more competition to our private schools because we need them to be better, too.

Brianne Pfannenstiel

How did you decide to go about opening a school? How did you get into that work and doing it in Wichita, Kansas?

Zach Lahn

You know, my, my intro into education was not one from a that would be a normal route. You know, I grew up in Western Iowa. I went to public schools in Iowa, graduated from Sioux City East, and I thought I was done with school after college. But, you know, when you see the options that are out there around the country and you understand the options that are there to serve students in the needs that they have, it's something you really can't unsee. And so I think with your own kids, as you think about education with other people's kids and providing better options, it really provides something that is a motivator to say, how can I bring this to more people? And actually, I would love to see a day when there's hundreds of these types of schools, not just like my school, but other types of schools across the state of Iowa, along with our public schools, operating in innovative ways to bring more choice to Iowa's families. I think it will raise the standard of education. It will help meet more needs. You know, there's certain principles in these schools that, if adopted in public schools, would be very good. Meaning, you know, right now we're in a place where, you know, you'll have a seven year old boy who can't sit still. And so they're medicated because they're told that something's wrong with them, when actually there's something wrong with the system that is very constraining. And they need more hands on work. They need more outdoor time and free play time. There's great options that are already doing these things. My goal is just to bring them as an option to the people of Iowa.

Brianne Pfannenstiel

And when you were the state director for Americans for Prosperity in Montana, you helped lead that group's effort to block the expansion of Medicaid in the state. If you're elected in Iowa, would you advocate for a rollback of Iowa's expanded Medicaid program?

Zach Lahn

Well, let's just take a step back and talk about that for just a moment. I was the interim state director out there for about a year. And one of the issues that was coming up at the time was the Medicaid expansion under Obamacare. And there were some real issues with that that multiple states were seeing the potential for unfunded mandates, the idea that able bodied adults that weren't trying to find work should be able to be eligible for Medicaid. And we'll tell you, with some of the federal changes, those things have been solved. My hope and goal for Medicaid is to make sure we have a good delivery system, good care, prompt payment for providers, and that we can provide Iowans with health care that they can count on. But the issues that we were really fighting against there, those loopholes, so to speak, those worries have largely been addressed.

Kay Henderson

Governor Reynolds recently signed a long term contract to have the state pay over half a billion dollars to Amazon and Cognizant. And you raised some concerns about Cognizant and its operations. Are you okay with that deal if you're elected governor?

Zach Lahn

You know, I would say that one, I'm not in government right now, but from what I can see, I think I would do things a bit differently. And again, we have to take this from the standpoint of I don't have all the information. This is something that's handled within the agencies. But when I look at how I handle things like this, the very first thing I see, I do believe that the private sector can handle a lot of this better than, than, than government. However, my first goal would be to see is there an Iowa company that can help provide these solutions for the people of Iowa? Can we keep those dollars within the state? And if there's not an Iowa company that can take on the entire contract right now, is there a company that we can help to build by giving our own contracts to an Iowa based company? Because my goal in this is to help build employment for the long term opportunities for the long term for Iowa's kids and for their grandkids to have good jobs. And I believe that outsourcing out of state or out of country is the wrong move. So I would very much like to see these contracts stay within the state of Iowa. And there's other ways in other industries, I think the same thing. So I've been, I think, very consistent on that, that we won't see eye to eye on everything. But I believe that in general, the private sector is going to handle this better than government.

Kay Henderson

You raised some very specific issues about Cognizant and its use of overseas workers, and H1B holders. Do you think that the governor's assertion that Iowans will be holding these jobs will be followed through by Cognizant, based on its track record?

Zach Lahn

Well, I think this is where accountability measures need to be put in place within government. And again, I don't know if those are there. I don't know the specifics of the contract. But I would tell you, if I was looking at something like, number one, Iowa companies, first. We need to help support Iowa's kids to do these jobs. Right now, we have a company in Des Moines that has put forward an H1B program or H1B job offer for somebody in it that would pay $150,000 a year. You cannot tell me that an Iowan wouldn't do that job. This program has been rife with abuse for a very long time. And so if I'm looking at a contract like that, it's very simple. There will be measures in place and oversight in place to make sure that those jobs are not going to H1B employees, and that Iowans do have first right at those jobs. And so, again, there's things I would do differently, but there are definitely protections I would put in place as well.

Brianne Pfannenstiel

Governor Reynolds has also signed a law that limits the next governor's emergency powers. And some people have speculated that that was an effort to potentially limit Rob Sand’s powers if he is elected. If you take the job, though, does that limit your abilities or do you think that's a good decision?

Zach Lahn

Well, I would be in favor of limiting my own powers. I mean, I believe the counties should have far more control. I think this is a big difference between me and my opponent. I think if you really look at his track record. I mean, of the people he's supported, going back all the way to college, calling himself an extreme liberal, supporting Joe Biden and Kamala Harris, being endorsed by Elizabeth Warren, supporting AOC's Green New Deal. All of this this is a big government liberal that we're talking about here who's trying to be a moderate. My position on this is very clear. I want centralized power. I want to make sure that we do not have centralized power as much as possible. I want to make sure that we have the ability for counties and local governments to have as much control. So I welcome the emergency powers being reduced for the governor, and I would likely sign more legislation like that to give more control over to counties and municipalities myself.

Kay Henderson

At the GOP state convention in June, you talked about the 10th amendment to the U.S. Constitution, and you said you'd sue the federal government every chance you get to bring our rights back to Iowa. So what's the first lawsuit?

Zach Lahn

You know? Well, gosh, there's probably a whole lot. But what we're talking about there, and again, this is another part of the difference between my opponent and I. I'm trying to make sure that we have less centralized power. The federal government has a lot of it. I want to bring as much back to the States and then as much back to the local government as possible. I believe he wants to do the opposite of that. When I look at this, I'm specifically referring to the Chevron deference ruling and how, you know, we now have the ability to sue the federal government for when agencies, bureaucratic agencies, have went rogue and created regulations. And I believe there are some regulations. I'll tell you one within agriculture is that one of my goals as governor is to see a time in which 80% of the food grown in Iowa is served, is served in Iowa's public schools. Sorry, 80% of the food served in Iowa's public schools is grown in Iowa, and right now there is a federal regulation that is blocking smaller farmers from being able to participate in that. That's one thing I will be looking at directly to see, do we have grounds to sue on this, to take it away from just the big guys and give Iowa's farmers a chance to serve their communities? So I believe there's going to be hundreds of opportunities for this, and I believe that we can keep the Attorney General's office very busy with opportunities to bring rights back to the state of Iowa.

Kay Henderson

Just briefly about farm chemicals, the Trump administration is being sued about new rules about dicamba. And farmers know what that is. And they've recently said that there will be a class of these, quote, unquote, forever chemicals that will be available for use in farm fields. Is that something that you would oppose?

Zach Lahn

Well, I'd say, number one, if we step back and talk about the registration process that the EPA is going through, it is absolutely a captured process by agency. Large corporations have the say within these agencies, and they're able to push these new chemicals that largely have not been tested independently. The EPA is basing most of their decisions on registration based on studies that have been funded by industry. It's a corrupt process. Now, I'm not running for federal office, but I do believe that is wrong. I believe the people of Iowa believe that's wrong. And I believe that we need to be looking at other types of opportunities that we have to control weeds, control pests. Right now, we have technologies that are emerging that would use electricity, that would use UV light, that would help to provide less exposure to these chemicals and more opportunities for farmers to get out from underneath the thumb of these big companies.

Brianne Pfannenstiel

You've said throughout your campaign that Iowans are looking for someone to stand up to the establishment and take on special interests. Who do you think the establishment is in Iowa? What are the special interests that you hope to stand up to?

Zach Lahn

I believe Rob Sand’s the establishment, just being quite frank. I mean, he's been involved in this for over 20 years. He's an elected official that's now been running for governor for eight years. And before that was in was in appointed bureaucratic positions. I believe that I've been very clear. There is a problem with the uniparty within our country. And I think that you can see that when you see that large corporations, special interests and lobbyists have bought off both sides on some issues. And there's many issues that we can talk about there. But oftentimes you'll see something come up in the state that the people really don't want or they really want to treat in a different way. You know, I'll look at an issue like data centers. I'm the candidate that’s called for a moratorium on data centers within the state. And the reason I'm doing that is because these are happening at breakneck speeds. Yet we see politicians from both sides supporting this. And I think that's because it's a very powerful industry, a very powerful industry. But I think people are asking somebody to just say, let's pause and set the rules of the game, make sure that local communities are involved to figure out where these should go, how much power are they going to use, what's the water usage that they're going to have? How are we going to protect the environment? And so that's one of those issues where you'll see large corporations having far too much influence.

Kay Henderson

You would not take office until January, when the legislature convenes. Do more counties, there are already at least eight that have passed moratoriums. Do you encourage every county in Iowa to pass a data center moratorium?

Zach Lahn

You know, I think every county has to look at the issues they're facing individually. So in some of the counties that have passed these moratoriums, what they're looking at is they haven't even passed the comprehensive plan of where these centers should go in their county. Also, they're dealing with the tremendous amount of incentives that they've been given. And now we're actually seeing some of these companies come to the table and say, we don't want incentives anymore. We want to pay our fair share. I think that's the baseline that it should be. And so I believe each county needs to look at what the unique situation in their county is. But I do believe there should be no incentives for these companies. And we have to make sure the environmental protections are in place. So I believe that more are going to do it.

Brianne Pfannenstiel

You've said throughout this campaign that you are your biggest donor to your race. You and other statewide candidates will have to report your next fundraising results here in a week or two. Do you, can, do you plan to continue self-funding through the general election?

Zach Lahn

I don't think we have a need to. We're seeing so much support from across the state. You know, but I think, again, as we talk about this, there's not enough discussion about where my opponent's money is coming from. I mean, he is, like I said, one of the richest people running for office, maybe in America. He's been given $12 million from his in-laws. They recently sold a $77 million ranch in Colorado, and that's helping to fund his campaign. This is not something that the people of Iowa know yet, and I'm hoping that more in the media will talk about this and hold them accountable. But on our end, we've seen an outpouring of support from contributors from across the state, and we believe that's going to continue as we go hold more events.

Kay Henderson

You mentioned the uniparty. You know, there are no more Federalists or Whigs in the country. Do you think there should be a new party, and would you join it?

Zach Lahn

You know, I do believe that more choice is a good thing for voters. And I think in the United States of America we have a rich history of that. However, I'm very proud to be a Republican. I believe that we have a rich history. We’re the party of Abraham Lincoln or the party of James Garfield, of John Sherman, who wrote the antitrust laws of Theodore Roosevelt. We have a rich history in the Republican Party, and I'm planning, I'm very proud to be in the Republican Party, and I have no plans to be in any other party.

Brianne Pfannenstiel

You've said that sometimes it's gotten to the point where if somebody says something is bipartisan, you question what special interest has bought off both parties. Do you think that bipartisanship can exist in this this polarized climate?

Zach Lahn

You know, I think our campaign has a very unique opportunity to have true bipartisanship, and it's because of the issues that have been running on since the beginning. You know, our campaign has been about authenticity and honesty with the voters of Iowa. You know, many of the issues that I've been running on, I ran on the Republican primary as well. And many Republicans said, you can't win a primary running on these issues. I said, we can, because these are issues that people care about, whether they're right or left. It doesn't matter if you're right or left. You don't want Iowa's kids leaving Iowa. You don't want our family farms dying off. You don't want our public education system in the bottom half, and you definitely don't want your friends, family and neighbors getting cancer. This is a bipartisan campaign. We've had a tremendous amount of independents and Democrats say they are switching their registration to vote for us. And I think we saw that in the Republican primary. You know, people were saying there might be 150,000 or 180,000 people show up to vote in the gubernatorial race in the Republican primary, 213,000 people showed up. It was a tremendous showing. And I believe our message played a part in that.

Kay Henderson

You've referred to the primary as bruising. Just real briefly, what was bruising about it?

Zach Lahn

Well, you know, primaries are where you where you test your ideas and where you hear feedback from both sides or from all sides. In our primary, we had a five way primary. You know, I think our message was a very different one. And it took a lot of explaining to do because it's not a bumper sticker. It's not a substitute for real thought, as somebody might say. It was a long form campaign where we had long form discussions to talk to the people about the true long term issues that have been facing the state of Iowa. And so I think as we went through that, we, like we faced opposition. And that's what you do in a primary. You know, my opponent, Rob Sand, did not face opposition. It was very much how Kamala Harris was coronated to be the next Republican or the next Democratic nominee for president. Rob Sand didn't have that same sharpening that we went through, and now I believe we're all the better for it. And there's been a coalescing around our campaign from all of our opponents.

Kay Henderson

What is the first bill you want to sign?

Zach Lahn

I would love to pass an Iowa first food freedom bill to help deregulate what my great grandpa did when he was a farmer, which was to grow animals on his own land, sell them to his neighbors and to the community, and not make him a criminal for that. And in there would also be the ability for us to start transitioning our public schools to serving food grown in the state of Iowa. These are things I'm thinking about for our rural communities to help them become more prosperous and vibrant. But there's many bills. If you ask, what's the first bill, tomorrow there's another bill I'm going to be thinking about as well, because we have a lot of priorities we're trying to accomplish.

Kay Henderson

Well, we don't have a lot of time. We're out of it for this edition of Iowa Press. Thanks for joining us today.

Zach Lahn

Thank you.

Kay Henderson

You may watch other episodes at Iowa Press at iowapbs.org. For everyone here at Iowa PBS, thanks for watching today.

Announcer

Funding for Iowa Press was provided by Friends, the Iowa PBS Foundation.

The Bob and Doreen Sheppard Family. Proud supporters of educational programing seen only on Iowa PBS.

Banking in Iowa goes beyond transactions. Banks work to help people and small businesses succeed. And Iowa banks are committed to building confident banking relationships. Iowa banks, your partner through it all.