Mike Naig

Mike Naig (born March 2, 1978) is an American politician in the state of Iowa. A Republican, he is the current Iowa secretary of agriculture. He became the deputy secretary of agriculture in September 2013. After the resignation of Bill Northey, Kim Reynolds appointed Naig to succeed him in March 2018. Naig defeated Tim Gannon in the November 2018 election.

Mike Naig
15th Secretary of Agriculture of Iowa
Assumed office
March 5, 2018
GovernorKim Reynolds
Preceded byBill Northey
Personal details
Born (1978-03-02) March 2, 1978
Political partyRepublican
EducationBuena Vista University (BA)

Early life

Naig was born on March 2, 1978.[1] He grew up on a family farm near Cylinder, Iowa. He graduated from Emmetsburg High School in 1996 and attended Buena Vista University, graduating in 2000 with a bachelor's degree in biology and political science.[2]

Political career

Naig spent 13 years working in the agriculture industry, serving in various trade organizations.[2] In September 2013, he became the deputy secretary of agriculture for the state of Iowa, serving under then-Iowa agriculture secretary Bill Northey.[3] 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, at which point governor Kim Reynolds appointed Naig as Iowa Secretary of Agriculture to fill the vacancy left by Northey.[2][4]

Naig won election to a full term as Iowa secretary of agriculture in November 2018, defeating Democratic challenger Tim Gannon 50% to 47%.[5] 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.[6] In the election, Naig received the backing of the Farm Bureau as well as companies like John Deere and Monsanto.[5]

In the 2022 election, Naig ran for reelection against Democrat John Norwood.[7] He has often spoken in favor of biofuels to combat climate change, rather than switching to electric vehicles.[8][9] Naig defeated Norwood.[10]

Personal life

Naig and his wife, Jaime, have three sons.[11]

References
  1. Swoboda, Rod (March 2, 2018). "Mike Naig named new Iowa AG secretary". Wallaces Farmer. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
  2. "Longtime deputy steps up as secretary of agriculture". N'west Iowa Review. March 26, 2018. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
  3. Shanahan, Julia (October 21, 2018). "Mike Naig eyes full term as Iowa secretary of agriculture". The Daily Iowan. Retrieved April 22, 2020.
  4. "Mike Naig talks tariffs and other issues in Muscatine". Quad-City Times. September 25, 2018. Retrieved November 17, 2018.
  5. Eller, Donnelle (November 5, 2018). "Backed by Farm Bureau, Republican Mike Naig defeats Democrat Tim Gannon to win Iowa AG secretary post". The Des Moines Register. Retrieved November 28, 2018.
  6. Donnelle, Eller (June 6, 2016). "Mike Naig just misses 35 percent of vote, so GOP leaders will choose AG secretary candidate". The Des Moines Register. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
  7. Murphy, Erin (October 28, 2022). "Meet the candidates for Iowa agriculture secretary". The Gazette. Retrieved October 30, 2022.
  8. "What Iowa AG secretary candidates Mike Naig & John Norwood say about eminent domain, ethanol". The Des Moines Register. October 6, 2022. Retrieved August 30, 2022.
  9. Lynch, James Q (May 24, 2019). "Iowa AG secretary sees farmers as part of climate change solution". The Gazette. Retrieved August 30, 2022.
  10. "Mike Naig reelected as Iowa's agriculture secretary in Election 2022". Desmoinesregister.com. November 9, 2022. Retrieved November 13, 2022.
  11. "Mike Naig: I'm hard at work expanding markets and conservation". Desmoinesregister.com. October 30, 2022. Retrieved November 13, 2022.
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