Representative Randy Feenstra Concedes to Zach Lahn in 2026 Iowa GOP Gubernatorial Primary

Zach Lahn, a businessman and farmer, won the Republican nomination for Iowa governor Tuesday with U.S. Representative Randy Feenstra and the three other GOP hopefuls conceding the race.

In his speech to supporters gathered in West Des Moines Tuesday night (June 2), Lahn shared the story of his family farm, how the family lost it in 2005 and how he got it back in 2014 to raise his family there.

“I fear every day we are losing the Iowa we love. We’ve lost 10,000 family farms since 2000. Our young people are leaving faster than 46 other states because they don’t see enough opportunity here,” Lahn said. “Wall Street hedge funds and foreign interests are buying and selling their land, driving up costs, so our kids are priced out of the market. They treat Iowa land like it’s a commodity instead of our inheritance. They treat us like numbers, not neighbors. This is over when I’m governor.”

As governor, Lahn said he would ban secret land ownership and tax hedge funds to bring money back to Iowa families as well as “take on the big ag cartels and break up their monopolies.”

He also brought up Iowa’s high cancer rates, saying he will find out what “big ag and big pharma” companies know about the safety of their products and direct state universities to fight the cancer rates.

“It’s hard to talk about, but we must talk about it. Iowa has the fastest growing cancer rate in the world,” Lahn said. “We all know something is terribly wrong, but too many politicians from Washington, D.C., to Des Moines have had their heads stuck in the sand, while big ag and big pharma printed money. This will not go on when I’m governor.”

The fight to lower Iowa’s cancer rates “should have happened long ago,” Lahn said, but “politicians like Rob Sand” have ignored it as “corporate interests have pillaged our state.”

Auditor Rob Sand, the only candidate to appear on the Democratic primary ballot, quickly secured his spot Tuesday as his party’s nominee to become Iowa governor in 2026. But the path forward for the Republican nomination was less clear, as five candidates competed to become their party’s nominee.

Feenstra and Lahn along with former director of the Iowa Department of Administrative Services Adam Steen; former state Rep. Brad Sherman of Williamsburg; and state Rep. Eddie Andrews of Johnston were on the June 2 primary ballot competing for the seat. The race brought more candidates than usual as it was the first election cycle in more than a decade without a Republican incumbent on the ballot, as Gov. Kim Reynolds had announced in 2025 she would not seek reelection.

The race has also gained significant attention as political forecasters predict Sand may be well-positioned heading into the 2026 general election. The Cook Political Report has rated the race a “toss-up” – and Republican gubernatorial hopefuls have had to argue why they are the strongest candidate to face Sand on the general election ballot.

Feenstra, who currently represents Iowa’s 4th Congressional District in the House, gathered support from many major GOP figures nationally and in Iowa, including former Governor Terry Branstad and on Friday, President Donald Trump. Though he said he wanted to debate Sand as the Republican candidate, some members of his party, including his primary opponents, criticized him for holding few public events and not participating in debates with the other GOP candidates during the primary cycle.

Todd Sievers, 44, said he was supporting Lahn in the Republican gubernatorial primary and he did not like U.S. Representative Randy Feenstra. Going into the election, he said was concerned that some people may not have done enough research before voting in the primary election. Some Republican voters may decide to back Feenstra solely because of Trump’s endorsement, he said.

“I hope can people look past the endorsement and decide for themselves,” he said.

Though the four other candidates running to become the GOP nominee had less initial name recognition than Feenstra and did not have Trump’s backing, Lahn was able to gain traction as he overtook Feenstra in fundraising for the reporting period from Jan. 1 through May 14 – money that added to his own $2 million personal loan which kicked off the campaign.

He also found support as a Republican candidate who has affiliated himself with the “Make America Health Again,” or “MAHA” movement led nationally by Health and Human Services Secretary Robert F. Kennedy and who has criticized Republicans’ approach to issues like water quality and the state’s cancer rates. Lahn was also backed by Turning Point Action, the political advocacy arm of Turning Point USA on Friday.

Kristine McVicker, a West Des Moines voter, said healthcare-related issues, particularly as they relate to Iowa’s water quality and soil quality, are among her top concerns and one reason she wanted to vote in the primary. She said she supported Lahn’s campaign because “Iowa has the nation’s second-highest rate of cancer,” she said, and Lahn has openly discussed Iowa’s cancer rates and possible contributing factors such as agricultural use of nitrates and pesticides.

He has also said he would veto legislation to grant ag companies immunity from civil litigation targeting their products.

“I think Lahn just wants to do what’s right for the people, versus doing what’s right for the party,” McVicker said.

Though the Associated Press had yet to call the race as of 10:45 p.m. Tuesday, Feenstra tearfully announced he was conceding his campaign to Lahn at his campaign watch party in Hull Tuesday night.

“I just called Zach Lahn and said, ‘hey, you’ve got to carry this torch, we’ve gotta make sure to beat Rob Sand and I’m all in to help him out,'” Feenstra said. AP called the race for Lahn at 11:50 p.m.

This loss in the primary makes Feenstra the second candidate endorsed by President Donald Trump to lose a primary election outright in 2026.

Feenstra entered the crowded cafe where his team was hosting an election night party to a sea of applause. He walked through the crowd, stopping first to embrace his cousin Ron Feenstra, who drove from Nashville for the event.

“I don’t know how people can do this, but for me, I’m okay,” Feenstra said.

Lahn and Feenstra gathered the most votes Tuesday night, followed by Steen. The former DAS director, who has campaigned as a conservative Christian and was backed by Bob Vander Platts, CEO of The Family Leader, gathered with several hundred people at the Berean Assembly of God Church in Pleasant Hill on election night as candidates waited for race results to come in.

Steen conceded the race Tuesday night, before the race was called. As he made his remarks, Steen said he did not know which candidate would win the nomination, but said he will support the Republican in the general election.

“This is not the outcome that I want,” Steen said. “This is not the outcome that I expected. But it’s the outcome we’re going to get. I will not be the Republican nominee for governor here in the state. … But here’s a commitment that I’ve made on the campaign trail, and I’ve always stayed true to my word this entire time. I’ve been asked the question, ‘will you support the Republican nominee if you are not the candidate?’ And I said, ‘absolutely, 100 percent.'”

Sherman, a former state representative and pastor who entered the race before Reynolds announced she would not seek another term as governor, came in below these three candidates, as did Andrews, who faced challenges as he attempted to make it on the June 2 primary ballot.

Republican leaders across the state quickly put their support behind Lahn after his primary victory, with Iowa GOP Chairman Jeff Kaufmann congratulating the candidate.

“The Republican Party of Iowa has and will always be a grassroots-powered, bottom-up movement, and they have spoken,” Kaufmann said. “Zach will work to keep Iowa the best place to live, work, and raise a family. Now it is time to unite behind our nominee and stop Democrat Rob Sand who would take our state down the same failed path as Illinois, Minnesota, and California with higher taxes, bigger government, and less freedom. Iowa’s future is on the ballot, and Republicans must stand together to keep our state moving in the right direction.”

But Democrats said Lahn will not be a successful candidate against Sand in the general election, calling him a “career political operative and Kansas carpetbagger who can’t even commit to living in the state he wants to lead,” in reference to his previous work for Americans for Prosperity and his ties to Kansas, where he lived and voted in the state’s elections in the 2018, 2020, and 2022 cycles.

“When he’s not in Kansas, Lahn has been busy pushing an extreme agenda that’s squarely out-of-touch with Iowans, like supporting unaccountable private school vouchers, pushing costly tariffs, courting Steve King, and backing even deeper cuts to Medicaid,” Iowa Democratic Party Chair Rita Hart said in a statement Tuesday. “Lahn enters the general election on the back foot after a bruising five-way primary that forced him to burn through his cash and tore Iowa Republicans apart. Meanwhile, Rob Sand has spent the last year building historic grassroots momentum with Iowans of all political stripes. Iowans have had enough of failed one-party rule and untrustworthy political insiders like Lahn. The more they get to know him, they will see exactly why Lahn is wrong for Iowa, and they will send him back to Kansas in November.”

Lahn criticized Democratic opponent Sand in his speech, saying he is funded by the establishment and beholden to it as he has been in politics for 20 years. He said “liberals like Rob Sand” claim to be moderate on the campaign trail but will “govern like radicals” if placed in office, giving examples like allowing transgender athletes to play in the sport of their identified gender and “late-term abortions” and not taking action against illegal immigration.

“It’s clear Rob Sand is not running a campaign, it’s an auction, and Iowa’s on the block,” Lahn said. “Here’s the deal, we have a message for Rob Sand and the established establishment tonight: Iowa is not for sale.”

Tom Foley and Joanna Schroeder contributed to this report, which was originally published at IowaCapitalDispatch.com/2026/06/02/rep-randy-feenstra-concedes-to-zach-lahn-in-2026-iowa-gop-gubernatorial-primary.

Robin Opsahl is an Iowa Capital Dispatch reporter covering the state Legislature and politics. They have experience covering government, elections, and more at media organizations including Roll Call, the Sacramento Bee, and the Wausau Daily Herald.

Brooklyn Draisey is a Report for America corps member covering higher education. She previously worked for the Quad-City Times and The Gazette covering topics ranging from business to culture.

Iowa Capital Dispatch is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.