Chester John "Chet" Culver (born January 25, 1966)
is the current
governor of Iowa,
having won the
2006
election. His assumption of office marks the first time that
Democrats have simultaneously controlled both the executive and
legislative branches of
Iowa's state
government since the 1965–1967 session of the
Iowa General Assembly. Culver is also
the first Democratic governor in Iowa since
Nelson G. Kraschel in 1937 to be elected to succeed
another Democrat. He was elected as the Federal Liaison for the
Democratic Governors
Association for 2008-2009. His father,
John Culver, is a former U.S. Senator from
Iowa.
Personal life
Culver was
born in Washington,
D.C.
He is a
Presbyterian (where he has served as an elder)
and is married to Mariclare Culver, who is
Roman Catholic.
Culver attended
Bethesda-Chevy Chase High
School
in Bethesda, Maryland
. He attended Virginia
Tech
on a football scholarship and earned a B.A. in education in 1988.
Later, he
received an M.A. in
teaching from Drake
University
in
1994.
After college, Culver moved to Iowa and worked as a staff member
for the state Democratic Party. He worked with Bonnie Campbell on
her 1990 campaign for state attorney general, serving as field
director. Culver previously worked a lobbyist under the guidance of
Campbell's husband. From 1991 to 1995, Culver worked as a consumer
and environmental advocate in the attorney general's office.
After
completing his master's degree, he took a job as a teacher in
Des
Moines
. Working first at Roosevelt
, and then Hoover High School, he taught government
and history. Culver coached sophomore football and eighth
grade boys basketball during his tenure
[172754].
In 1998, Culver ran for
Iowa
Secretary of State and was victorious. At the age of 32, he was
the youngest Secretary of State in the nation. He was reelected to
a second term in 2002 by an overwhelming margin. While serving at
this post, he created the Iowa Student Political Awareness Club,
which attempts to get students motivated to participate in politics
when they reach voting age
[172755]. During his tenure, Culver received
many accolades for modernizing the office, increasing voter
registration, and ensuring voter accessibility for people with
disabilities.
Contrary
to his wife who supported John Edwards,
on February 7, 2008 in Omaha, Nebraska
, he endorsed Barack
Obama as the Democratic
nominee in the 2008 presidential
election.
2006 gubernatorial race
Culver's main opponents for the Democratic nomination were former
director of the
Iowa Department of
Economic Development Mike Blouin and
seven-term State Representative
Ed Fallon.
Secretary of Agriculture
Patty Judge was
also running for the nomination, but after she withdrew from the
race, she gave her support to Culver and became his
running mate. Culver won the Democratic primary
with 39% of the vote.
Culver faced Republican Congressman
Jim
Nussle of Manchester, who was unopposed in the Republican
primary, in the general election. On November 7, 2006, Culver
defeated Nussle in the general election by nearly 100,000 votes,
winning 54% of the vote to Nussle's 44%, with minor party
candidates getting 2%.
Policies as governor
Culver cuts budget across the board by 10%. This will cost about 1,400 Iowans their jobs.
The State of Iowa's net appropriations have increased from $5.0
billion (FY2006) to $6.1 billion (FY2009).
Electoral History
References
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