Rod Roberts (born October 22, 1957) is the Iowa State Labor Commissioner. Roberts is also a former

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 ...

gubernatorial candidate and five-term Iowa State Representative from the 51st and 80th Districts. He served in the

Iowa House of Representatives The Iowa House of Representatives is the lower house of the Iowa General Assembly, the upper house being the Iowa Senate. There are 100 seats in the Iowa House of Representatives, representing 100 single-member districts across the state, formed ...

from 2001 to 2011 and was an assistant minority leader. He received his BA from Iowa Christian College, as did his wife. During his last term in the Iowa House, Roberts served on the Administration and Rules, Appropriations, Local Government, State Government, and Transportation committees. His political experience includes serving on the Carroll School Board from 1996 to 2000. Other experience includes serving as past president of the Carroll Rotary Club and serving on the Board of Directors for New Hope Village (a facility supporting disabled adults) in Carroll.

Early and personal life

Rod Roberts was born in 1957 to parents, Jack Roberts, a history teacher and Darlene Roberts, a bank teller. He grew up in Zearing, and was highly influenced by Ronald Reagan. Roberts and his wife, Trish, moved to Carroll in 1985.

Electoral history

Roberts ran for the Iowa House's District 80 in 1998, losing to incumbent

Democrat Democrat, Democrats, or Democratic may refer to: Politics *A proponent of democracy, or democratic government; a form of government involving rule by the people. *A member of a Democratic Party: **Democratic Party (United States) (D) **Democratic ...

James Drees. He ran again in 2000 and won the election, defeating Democratic opponent Thomas Halbur. After the districts were redrawn for the 2002 election, Roberts was elected to the new District 51. He did not seek re-election to the House in 2010, choosing to seek the Republican nomination for governor instead. He was defeated in the primary, coming in a distant third behind former governor

Terry Branstad Terry Edward Branstad (born November 17, 1946) is an American politician and former diplomat. A member of the Republican Party, he served three terms in the Iowa House of Representatives from 1973 to 1979 before serving as governor of Iowa f ...

, who went on to win the general election, and Iowa businessman

Bob Vander Plaats Robert Lee Vander Plaats (born April 12, 1963) is an American politician and political activist. Since 2010, he has been the president and CEO of The Family Leader, a social conservative organization in Iowa. Active in Republican Party politi ...

. At the Republican state convention, he declined when nominated for the Republican nomination for Lieutenant Governor, endorsing then- State Senator

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 ...

for the position.

Electoral history

*incumbent

References

External links

Representative Rod Roberts
''official Iowa General Assembly site'' *
Profile
at ''Iowa House Republicans'' {{DEFAULTSORT:Roberts, Rod 1957 births Living people People from Waverly, Iowa Republican Party members of the Iowa House of Representatives School board members in Iowa People from Carroll, Iowa