Mike Naig (born March 2, 1978) is an American politician in the state of

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to th ...

. A

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

, he is the current

Iowa Secretary of Agriculture The Secretary of Agriculture of Iowa is an elected position in government of the U.S. state of Iowa that was created in 1923 by the extra session of the 40th General Assembly. The Secretary of Agriculture heads the Iowa Department of Agriculture ...

. He became the deputy secretary of agriculture in September 2013. After the resignation of Bill Northey,

Kim Reynolds Kimberly Kay Reynolds (née Strawn; born August 4, 1959) is an American politician serving as the 43rd governor of Iowa since 2017. A member of the Republican Party, Reynolds served as the 46th lieutenant governor of Iowa from 2011 to 2017. B ...

appointed Naig to succeed him in March 2018. Naig defeated Tim Gannon in the November 2018 election.

Early life

Naig was born on March 2, 1978. He grew up on a family farm near

Cylinder, Iowa Cylinder is a city in Palo Alto County, Iowa, United States. The population was 87 at the time of the 2020 census. History The town began in 1885 with the construction of a large hay barn, and soon after a railway siding was built to load the ...

. He graduated from Emmetsburg High School in 1996 and attended

Buena Vista University Buena Vista University is a private university in Storm Lake, Iowa. Founded in 1891 as Buena Vista College, it is affiliated with the Presbyterian Church. The university's campus is situated on the shores of Storm Lake, a natural lake. At i ...

, graduating in 2000 with a

bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ...

in biology and political science.

Political career

Naig spent 13 years working in the agriculture industry, serving in various trade organizations. In September 2013, he became the deputy secretary of agriculture for the state of Iowa, serving under then-Iowa agriculture secretary Bill Northey. He served in this role until March 2018, when Northey was appointed Under Secretary for Farm Production and Conservation at the

United States Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food. It aims to meet the needs of com ...

, at which point governor

appointed Naig as

to fill the vacancy left by Northey. Naig won election to a full term as Iowa Secretary of Agriculture in November 2018, defeating Democratic challenger Tim Gannon 50% to 47%. During the primary, he received 34.7 percent of the vote, beating fellow Republican Dan Zumbach but not receiving enough votes to automatically secure the party's nomination. In the election, Naig received the backing of the

Farm Bureau The American Farm Bureau Federation (AFBF), also known as Farm Bureau Insurance and Farm Bureau Inc. but more commonly just the Farm Bureau (FB), is a United States-based insurance company and lobbying group that represents the American agr ...

as well as companies like John Deere and

Monsanto The Monsanto Company () was an American agrochemical and agricultural biotechnology corporation founded in 1901 and headquartered in Creve Coeur, Missouri. Monsanto's best known product is Roundup, a glyphosate-based herbicide, developed in ...

. In the 2022 election, Naig ran for reelection against Democrat John Norwood. He has often spoken in favor of biofuels to combat climate change, rather than switching to electric vehicles. Naig defeated Norwood.

Personal life

Naig and his wife, Jaime, have three sons.

References

External links

{{DEFAULTSORT:Naig, Mike Living people 1978 births People from Palo Alto County, Iowa Buena Vista University alumni Iowa Republicans Secretaries of Agriculture of Iowa 21st-century American politicians