Iowa Republican's 'humble' façade crumbles under extravagant mansions and a private jet

GOP gubernatorial nominee Zach Lahn’s humble and ‘homespun’ campaign in Iowa may be collapsing under revelations shared with the Daily Mail.

“Is [this] really his home?” writes Daily Mail U.S. News reporter Alyssa Guzman. “As the wealthy businessman faces growing questions over where he spends the majority of his time, the Daily Mail can exclusively reveal that he has offloaded ritzy properties in Kansas and Montana during the run up to November's vote.”

The Mail reports Lahn -- who calls his Democratic opponent "one of the wealthiest people running for office right now," -- has carefully cultivated his image as a 'sixth-generation farmer' dedicated to a humble, rural life in Iowa. Lahn's website depicts him and his wife, Annie Lahn, and their blended family of seven kids roaming scenic fields of corn. The site also carries footage of Lahn driving around his small hometown where he served as high school quarterback of his football team and helped his family farm.

Lahn claims he had to leave the state, but returned in 2014 after buying back his great-grandmother's farm.

“Everything I needed was right here,' he says in his campaign video. 'By night, me and Annie sanded floors, hung drywall, and put this place back together one board at a time.”

“But Lahn was still legally married to his ex-wife, Lauren, until June 2020, and a closer look at his background reveals an altogether messier picture,” reports the Mail. “Lahn's new wife, Annie, was married to Chase Koch, the son of his ex-boss, the billionaire Charles Koch until they divorced in April 2020. Lahn and Annie applied for a Montana marriage license just 11 days after his own divorce was finalized.”

And the Mail reports there are new doubts over the amount of time Lahn spends in the state he wants to lead, with flight records suggesting he spends the majority of his time hundreds of miles away in Kansas.

“It appears Lahn uses a private plane to shuttle to and from the family's $1.2 million six-bedroom estate in Wichita, Kansas. He appears to have begun flying to Belle Plaine more frequently after launching his campaign,” reports Guzman. “Aircraft data suggests Lahn spends only about 20 percent of his time on the Iowa farm, located near Buckeye Creek, that features in his promotional material.”

Lahn’s Kansas property — not featured on his website — has an indoor pool and access to a private pond. The family had owned it since the summer of 2024, when it was listed as his new wife’s primary residence. But in 2025, the Daily Mail reports it was offloaded to one of Lahn's donors — for a single dollar.

Also, in 2025, just before launching his November campaign, Lahn sold off “a gorgeous Montana ski mansion for $5 million,” according to records.

“Had he declared the state as his primary residence just a few weeks later, Lahn would have been ineligible for governor in 2026, as the state constitution requires two years of residency to run,” reports the Mail. “… Lahn was a registered Republican in Kansas from 2018 to 2024, records showed.

Despite Lahn claiming he is 'not a politician,' the Mail also reports he worked as a political operative for Montana Sen. Steve Daines and the former Colorado Sen. Cory Gardner and others. And he worked for many years for Koch's Americans for Prosperity, “where he spent his time as state director trying to block Montana's expansion of Medicaid.”