Lieutenant Governor of Iowa
What position did Terry Branstad take in early 1980s?
Terry Branstad Terry Edward Branstad ( born November 17 , 1946 ) is an American politician , university administrator , and diplomat from the Republican Party . He served as the governor of Iowa from 1983 to 1999 and from 2011 to 2017 . Branstad served as United States Ambassador to China from 2017 to 2020 , during the presidency of Donald Trump . He also served three terms in the Iowa House of Representatives from 1973 to 1979 . Branstad served as the 39th governor of Iowa from 1983 to 1999 . After a first retirement from politics , he served from 2003 to 2009 as President of Des Moines University , a private medical osteopathic school . In 2010 he ran for governor again and defeated Democratic incumbent Chet Culver to become the states 42nd governor . He was reelected to a sixth term in 2014 . His tenure of 22 years , 4 months , and 13 days makes him the longest-serving governor of any state in American history , having surpassed George Clintons 8,169 days in office in December 2015 . In December 2016 , Branstad accepted President Donald Trumps nomination as United States Ambassador to China . He was confirmed and sworn in in May 2017 . In 2020 , Branstad resigned as Ambassador to China to work on Trumps reelection campaign . Early life . Branstad was born in Leland , Iowa . His father was Edward Arnold Branstad , a farmer ; his mother was Rita ( née Garland ) . Branstads mother was Jewish , and his father a Norwegian American Lutheran . Branstad was raised Lutheran and later converted to Catholicism . He is a second cousin of US Attorney-General Merrick Garland . Education . Branstad received a Bachelor of Arts in political science from the University of Iowa in 1969 and a Juris Doctor from Drake University Law School in 1974 . He was drafted after college and served in the United States Army from 1969 to 1971 as a military policeman in the 503rd Military Police Battalion at Fort Bragg . He was awarded the Army Commendation Medal for meritorious service ; he once recalled that he arrested actress Jane Fonda for coming onto post at Arlington National Cemetery , where she was planning to attend an antiwar protest . Early political career . Branstad served three terms in the Iowa House of Representatives from 1973 to 1979 and was the Lieutenant Governor of Iowa from 1979 to 1983 , the year he was first elected governor . Governor of Iowa . First tenure ( 1983–1999 ) . When elected governor at age 36 , Branstad became the youngest chief executive in Iowas history . Reelected in 1986 , 1990 , and 1994 , he left office as Iowas longest-serving governor . He served as Chairman of the National Governors Association in 1989–90 , and also was Chair of the Midwestern Governors Association . In 1997 he chaired the Education Commission of the States , the Republican Governors Association , and the Governors Ethanol Coalition . In 1983 Branstad vetoed a bill to establish a state lottery . Iowas unemployment rate went from 8.5% when Branstad took office to a record low 2.5% by the time he left office in 1999 . In his first year as governor , the state budget had a $90 million deficit . It took several years until the budget was balanced . Branstad said he did not have enough support in the legislature to approve budget reforms until 1992 . By 1999 Iowa had an unprecedented $900 million budget surplus . Inter-gubernatorial career . Branstad focused most of his efforts outside of politics after leaving office in early 1999 . He founded Branstad and Associates , LLC and was also a partner in the firm of Kaufman , Pattee , Branstad & Miller and a financial advisor for Robert W . Baird and Co . In August 2003 Branstad accepted an offer from Des Moines University to become its president . On October 16 , 2009 , he announced his retirement from Des Moines University to run again for governor . President George W . Bush appointed Branstad to chair the Presidents Commission on Excellence in Special Education . The commission was charged with developing a plan to improve the educational performance of students with disabilities . After completing his work with the commission in 2003 , Branstad was asked to serve as a member of the National Advisory Council for Positive Action for Teen Health , or PATH . The advisory council encourages action to detect adolescent mental illness . In April 2003 Branstad was named a public member of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants , which comprises both professional and public members who address a variety of issues related to accounting . Branstad serves on the boards of Conmed Health Management Inc , American Future Fund , the Iowa Health System , Liberty Bank , the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants , and Living History Farms . Second tenure ( 2011–2017 ) . 2010 gubernatorial election . On August 2 , 2009 , The Des Moines Register reported that Branstad was actively considering seeking the Republican nomination for governor . On October 7 , Branstad filed papers to run for governor in the 2010 election . According to a September Des Moines Register poll , he maintained a 70% favorability rating from Iowans as compared to Governor Chet Culvers rating of 50% . On June 8 , 2010 , Branstad won the Republican gubernatorial nomination , but when opposing candidate Bob Vander Plaats conceded , he did not endorse Branstad . The Des Moines Tea Party gave Branstad a no on their report card regarding criteria for acceptance and said Branstad had a history of raising taxes , [ was ] not a true conservative , increased the size of government every year he held office , [ and ] built a state-owned phone company . Former Iowa State Auditor Richard Johnson accused Branstad of keeping two sets of books on the state budget while governor . Johnson said Branstad needed to be transparent to Iowa voters about the reporting of Iowas finances during his tenure as governor . 2014 gubernatorial election . Branstad ran for reelection in 2014 . He was opposed in the Republican primary by Tom Hoefling , a political activist and nominee for president in 2012 for both Americas Party and American Independent Party . Branstad won the primary with 83% of the vote . In the general election , Branstad faced Democratic nominee State Senator Jack Hatch and won with 59% of the vote . Voting rights . Branstad rescinded an executive order by his predecessor Tom Vilsack that restored voting rights to approximately 115,000 felons who had completed their sentences . Iowa was the last remaining state to have felons permanently disenfranchised until 2020 , when Branstads successor , Kim Reynolds , restored voting rights for some felons who had completed their sentences . Taxes . In June 2013 , Branstad signed into law a sweeping tax reform bill that had widespread bipartisan support , passing the Iowa Senate by 44 votes to 6 and the Iowa House by 84 votes to 13 . The bill , Senate File 295 , provided for the states largest tax cut in history , including an estimated $4.4 billion in property tax reform and an estimated $90 million of annual income tax relief , in part in the form of an increase in the earned income tax credit . The bill also included significant reforms to education and health care . Job creation ranking . A June 2013 Business Journals analysis of 45 of the countrys 50 governors ranked Branstad 28th in job creation . The ranking was based on a comparison of the annual private sector growth rate in all 50 states using data from the U.S . Bureau of Labor Statistics . Gun rights . On April 13 , 2017 , with large Republican majorities in the Iowa legislature , Branstad signed a bill into law expanding gun rights , enacting a stand-your-ground law , expanding the right of citizens to sue if they believe their Second Amendment rights are being infringed , and expanding the gun rights of minors , among several other provisions . Discrimination lawsuit . On July 15 , 2019 , a jury in Polk County , Iowa awarded a gay former state official $1.5 million in damages , finding that Branstad had discriminated against him based on sexual orientation in 2012 . U.S . Ambassador to China . In December 2016 President-elect Donald Trump chose Branstad to serve as US Ambassador to China , succeeding Max Baucus . Branstad accepted the offer within one day after meeting with Trump in New York . Trump cited Branstads decades of experience with China while governor of Iowa . Xi Jinping , Chinas paramount leader , considers Branstad an old friend . Branstads relationship with Xi dates to 1985 , when Xi , then a young official from Hebei Province , headed a five-man agricultural delegation to Iowa . Branstads hearing before the U.S . Senate Foreign Relations Committee was held on May 2 , 2017 . Branstad was confirmed by the Senate on May 22 , 2017 , in an 82 to 13 vote . He resigned as governor on May 24 , 2017 , in a ceremony at the Iowa State House , and was immediately sworn in as U.S . Ambassador to China . His appointment marked the third time in a decade that a politician resigned a statewide office to become the Ambassador to China ; Jon Huntsman Jr . resigned as governor of Utah in 2009 , and Max Baucus resigned as U.S . Senator from Montana in 2014 . In May 2019 Branstad traveled to Tibet Autonomous Region amid heightening trade tensions between the United States and China . This diplomatic journey was designed to give the United States a better perception of Tibet and its people , cultural practices and life . Branstad stepped down as U.S . Ambassador to China in early October 2020 . Personal life . Branstad married Christine Johnson on June 17 , 1972 . They have three children and eight grandchildren . Christine has worked as a medical assistant and as a volunteer at schools and hospitals . Branstad is a member of the Ancient and Accepted Scottish Rite of Freemasonry . He received the honor of Knight Commander of the Court of Honor in 2015 . In 2015 longtime newspaperman and Iowa historian Mike Chapman published a biography of Branstad , Iowas Record-Setting Governor : The Terry Branstad Story . The book details Branstads youth on the family farm , his high school days in Forest City , and his rise in politics . Electoral history . - 1972 election for Iowa House of Representatives District 8 : - Terry Branstad ( R ) , 59.0% - Elmer Selbrand ( D ) , 41.0% - 1974 election for Iowa House of Representatives District 8 : - Terry Branstad ( R ) , 68.7% - Jean Haugland ( D ) , 31.3% - 1976 election for Iowa House of Representatives District 8 : - Terry Branstad ( R ) , 70.4% - Franklin Banwart ( D ) , 29.6% - 1978 Republican primary election for Lieutenant Governor of Iowa : - Terry Branstad , 42.1% - Hansen , 32.7% - Oakley , 25.2% - 1978 election for Lieutenant Governor of Iowa : - Terry Branstad ( R ) , 57.7% - William Palmer ( D ) , 42.3% - 1982 election for Governor of Iowa : - 1986 election for Governor of Iowa : - 1990 election for Governor of Iowa : - 1994 election for Governor of Iowa : - 2010 election for Governor of Iowa : - 2014 election for Governor of Iowa : External links . - Ambassador Terry Branstad biography - Terry Branstad for Governo