CORALVILLE, Iowa — Iowa Democratic gubernatorial candidate Rob Sand bashed the Trump administration and Iowa Republicans for shifting the burden of funding food assistance programs to the states last year without a plan for filling in gaps in funding.

Sand, 44, told food pantry organizers from east-central Iowa on Wednesday during a 2026 election campaign stop that Trump administration officials have not been willing to listen to state level leaders left to implement reforms to the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program enacted by Republicans in the One Big Beautiful Bill Act in 2025.