Drag queens, trans pastor, abortion rallies: Inside Dem governor hopeful's progressive church
In one of the most hotly contested governor's races in the country, the Democratic nominee has been working overtime to cultivate a moderate image — while reportedly attending a church that openly embraces some of the progressive causes dividing voters in Iowa.
Rob Sand, Iowa’s state auditor and its Democratic nominee for governor, regularly attended Plymouth Congregational United Church of Christ, located in the state’s capital, as of late 2025, according to a local journalist. Over the years, Plymouth has hosted and promoted drag queen performances, invited a transgender pastor to serve as a guest pastor and openly supported abortion.
Sand has emphasized his faith on the campaign trail, repeatedly referencing Christianity and quoting scripture, at times successfully appealing to otherwise conservative Iowans. In addition to leaning on his faith, Sand has repeatedly described himself as independently minded, claimed to have voted for Republicans in the past and said that he sometimes prefers working with the GOP over Democrats, calling political parties "poison."
"I am a Christian. I’m a conservative. But I’m not a party-based person," one voter is quoted as saying in a Sand press release. "I like to vote for the person as opposed to the party. And to me, (Sand) just seems really honest and down to earth. And I enjoyed him."
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Sand's reported church attendance, however, connects him to a congregation whose progressive religious and political positions stand in contrast to the moderate image he has emphasized on the campaign trail.
Sand’s church is open about its progressive slant, with its "about" page featuring an image of churchgoers at a gay pride parade, noting that the church does not take the Bible literally and stating that it "has been an LGBTQ+ Open and Affirming congregation for more than 30 years."
An image of the church included in a profile compiled by the United Church of Christ shows it flying a pride flag on its grounds, noting that the church "is a progressive powerhouse in the region."
"Rob Sand goes to church weekly and does so in Iowa, unlike Zach Lahn. Rob’s faith is deeply important to him, and like many, he has never found a church where he agrees with everything, but does prefer traditional services with liturgy and classic hymns," a spokeswoman for his campaign told Fox News Digital. "Rob has always been independent-minded, and he isn’t going to take lessons in morality from a sex toy salesman who lives in Kansas."
The mention of sex toys was a reference to FirmTech, a company that manufactures wearable sexual wellness devices and once counted GOP gubernatorial nominee Zach Lahn as an investor. Lahn maintains that the product was originally developed to monitor cardiovascular health and that he divested before the company shifted toward more sexually suggestive marketing.
Sand has also pointed to Lahn's regular flights to Kansas, arguing that they betray tenuous ties to the state he's seeking to govern. Lahn, meanwhile, says that he lives full-time in Iowa, explaining that the flights are a product of him needing to shuttle children from a previous marriage between the two states.
Lahn's campaign did not divulge where he attends church when asked by Fox News Digital.
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Plymouth’s progressive reputation is well-earned.
In May 2025, Plymouth hosted drag queen "Flamy Grant" for a concert, according to advertisements for the event, bringing an artist whose broader catalog includes sexually explicit lyrics to the progressive Des Moines congregation.
In one song, titled "Take a Chance on Me," not to be confused with the ABBA classic of the same name, Grant sings, "I’m a patient lover unless I finish first. And I expect you [to] finish me if the roles are reversed. I maintain the mystery of my sexual history."
In another song, the drag queen complained about his childhood church, stating that "I guess the lesson there was God would only hear a prayer If it came from a person with a c---." The song continues to state that "secretly most men just fear the snatch" and praises Eve for disobeying God by eating the forbidden fruit.
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About a year later, Plymouth promoted a drag event on its Facebook page at a nearby church billed as a "family-friendly karaoke fundraiser" headlined by drag queen "Tess Tura." Tura hosts a podcast where, among other topics, unprotected gay sex is discussed.
In a similar vein, Plymouth invited transgender pastor Paula Stone Williams to serve as a guest pastor for one weekend in 2023, according to a local media report. At the time, Williams had recently published a book titled "As a Woman: What I learned about power, sex, and the patriarchy after I transitioned."
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Some of Plymouth’s pro-LGBTQ advocacy is directed at young children.
Plymouth disclosed in a 2025 job posting that it partners with the Rainbow Faith Coalition, a group that says "LGBTQ+ identities are God-given, honored and celebrated," and that "[f]ully living into these identities in name, pronoun, relationship and gender expression is not a barrier to participation … in any areas of the faith community," including children’s programming and education.
The church also offers Our Whole Lives programming, a sexuality education curriculum co-published by the Unitarian Universalist Association and the United Church of Christ, with classes beginning in first grade that address topics including sexuality, relationships, gender identity and sexual health.
Similar to its theology, the church’s politics are decidedly liberal.
In February 2025, for example, Plymouth’s pastors joined a protest in Iowa’s statehouse "to pray and stand up for our trans and gender nonconforming friends and neighbors," per a post on the church's Facebook page. A few years prior, church leadership participated in a pro-LGBTQ rally outside the statehouse, according to another church Facebook post.
"Plymouth’s bold social justice presence is a hallmark in the community and is often cited as a reason for new members joining the congregation," a church job posting from 2025 reads. "We are committed to advancing justice, equity, and compassion in and beyond our community."
Indeed, as the Supreme Court struck down Roe v. Wade, Plymouth mobilized to fight against pro-life legislation, supporting those fighting for "reproductive healthcare" and referring to women as "all who hold the potential to bear life." The church held a prayer vigil in support of abortion in May 2022 and rallied at the state capital in July 2023 to protest against efforts to regulate abortion.
After former President Joe Biden became the first president to formally recognize Transgender Day of Visibility in 2021, Plymouth followed his lead by sending Facebook messages to its followers observing Transgender Day of Visibility and Transgender Day of Remembrance between 2021 and 2023.
"This is disturbing material, but it’s right in line with Rob Sand’s liberal views. If you believe men can become women, then what’s to stop you from teaching it to schoolchildren?" a spokesperson for the Lahn campaign told Fox News Digital. "Values matter and Rob’s values are NOT Iowa values."