Iowa House candidate Sarah Trone Garriott is now the latest Democrat to lie about her record on tax hikes.
She recently released a campaign ad in which she claimed she cares about “lower costs and definitely lower taxes.”
It's why, in the State Senate, I voted with Republicans to cap property tax bills and raise exemptions for seniors, veterans, and new homeowners, and broke with Democrats to cut income taxes and sales taxes too. In Congress, I'll vote to lower taxes, and I'll work with anyone to do it because I approve this message and lower costs for Iowans too. That's the truth.
In Congress, I'll vote to lower taxes on middle class families and I'll work with anyone to do it. pic.twitter.com/RQhL30UgE6
— Sarah Trone Garriott (@SarahforIowa) September 25, 2026
Despite her current comments, her record shows that she’s more of a fan of higher taxes than she wants Iowans to believe. During her stint as a state senator, she voted against a bill that provided tax relief for many residents.
The Iowa Senate voted 32-16 in favor of H.F. 2317, which if passed by the house and signed by Gov. Reynolds would significantly reduce individual and corporate income tax rates for Iowans.
The proposal would cut Iowan’s income tax rates down to 3.9% by 2026. It would exempt 401(k)s, pensions, and IRAs from state taxes, cut corporate taxes, and change Iowa’s corporate tax credits.
The new flat income tax rate would eliminate Iowa’s progressive income tax system, where wealthier Iowans pay higher rates than lower-income Iowans.
Garriott also criticized Republican Rep. Zach Nunn (IA-3) for voting in favor of the Working Families Tax Cuts bill and expressed support for increasing taxes.
“This is a bad bill that will make life more expensive for hardworking Iowans and their families. And Zach Nunn voted for it,” she said in a statement. “Instead of making life more affordable for Iowans, he’s working with Republican politicians in Washington to give billionaires a tax cut. It’s wrong, and it’s why Iowans need new leadership. We can’t afford Zach Nunn’s votes.”
But this isn’t the only time Garriott has lied about her positions. In August, she falsely claimed she did not support allowing biological males in women’s spaces.
Sarah Trone Garriott, a Democratic candidate for Congress in Iowa's 3rd Congressional District, is trying to reassure voters that she doesn’t support men having access to women’s locker rooms — a stance she believes her opponents have tried to obfuscate.
"I’m a mom with two kids in Iowa public schools. Their education and safety literally keep me up at night. So, when my opponent cherry-picks and twists my record, I have to set it straight," Trone Garriott said in a recent campaign video.
"I oppose letting men in women’s locker rooms," she added.
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However, it was Trone Garriott’s stance on bathroom policy that Vice President J.D. Vance zeroed in on in a campaign speech for Nunn earlier this year.
"His opponent voted to push biological males in girls’ sports as early as kindergarten. She was voting against banning gender transition surgeries for minors," Vance said.
Vance, like other Republican critics, referred to two key votes Trone Garriott cast in the Iowa Senate: one, passed in 2023, prohibits elementary and secondary schools from letting someone enter a bathroom "that does not correspond with the person’s biological sex." A second bill, which became law in 2022, sets the eligibility rules for school and college sports teams based on biological sex.
Trone Garriott voted against both of them.
Iowans might be interested to see how often Garriott has lied about her positions just to endear herself to voters.
"Sarah Trone Garriott can run as many ads as she wants, but she can’t erase the truth about her voting record,” National Republican Congressional Committee spokeswoman Emily Tuttle told Townhall. “While Zach Nunn has voted for the largest tax cut since World War Two, Sarah Trone Garriott voted to take more money out of Iowans pockets. From lying about her support of men in girls’ locker rooms to lying about her record on taxes, she cannot be trusted.”