Maas, a local government official, farmer and business owner, announced her candidacy June 30, but said the campaign really started weeks prior.
She is the second person to announce a campaign for state auditor in the 2026 election, following Lt. Gov. Chris Cournoyer’s campaign launch in May. Current State Auditor Rob Sand, a Democrat, is running for governor. No Democrats have announced a bid for the seat.
Maas said she plans to visit all 99 counties in the next four months to learn from local government officials about how to make the state’s auditing system more efficient.
“Long story short, I think what we need to do is reach out and mend the bond between state and local governments,” she said. "We have our county auditors, we have city clerks ... they’re really the boots on the ground. They know what is going on. They know where to look, where we’re missing things.”
Maas said her biggest priority is looking at local government budgets with a fine-tooth comb by using a statewide accounting system where local governments levying property taxes would input their budgets line-by-line.
“The public needs to know where their dollars are going. That’s the biggest issue for me, coming from local government.”Abigail Mass, candidate for state auditor
“I have a few ideas on making the process expedited and much more simple,” Maas said. “But how many times do you open your phone and see another article that a county or city clerk stole money, or misspent money — or they go negative, mid-budget year. I think that’s a problem.”
Maas said property taxes are an issue she knows well as a farmer and business owner. She said making sure people know where their dollars are going is important.
“Business owners don’t operate on deficits,” she said. “We don’t get a lot of cash and then decide how to spend it. We understand that increasing your profits is not always about increasing revenues. It’s more likely decreasing your costs.”
She said her experience as a county supervisor will set her up for success in finding ill-spent dollars in local governments’ budgets.
“I know better than most people would on where to look to find the issues and where to find the fraud, and even the gray area — it's not always black and white,” Maas said. “There are things that are not explicitly illegal, but I question, are they the best use of taxpayer dollars?”
In her trek across Iowa’s 99 counties, Maas said she didn’t realize how much she would enjoy meeting with county auditors and learning about the different concerns they have and the issues they face.
“At the end of the day, how do we correct these issues? It’s through elections,” Maas said. “The public needs to know where their dollars are going. That’s the biggest issue for me, coming from local government.”
