Ken Carlson
Ken Carlson is an American politician, retired teacher and retired farmer who represented the Iowa's 13th [House of Representatives district|13th district] of the Iowa [House of Representatives] from 2023 to 2025. Carlson's district included parts of southern Plymouth County, western Cherokee County, eastern Woodbury County and the whole of Monona County. He is a member of the Republican Party.
Early life
Carlson was born in 1951 near Whiting, Iowa, where he was raised. He graduated from Whiting Senior High School and attended Buena Vista University.Political career
Following decennial redistricting in 2021, Carlson announced his intent to run for the open 13th district seat in Iowa House of Representatives in March 2022. He was challenged in the Republican primaries on June 7, 2022, by Mark Peters, a farmer and truck driver, whom he defeated by over 300 votes, and defeated Libertarian candidate Amy Janowski in the general election on November 8 by over 8,400 votes.Carlson served as vice chairman of the Natural Resources Committee, and was also a member of the Agriculture, Economic Growth and Technology, and Veterans Affairs committees.
Carlson endorsed Ron DeSantis for president in 2023. In 2024 he announced that he would not seek reelection.
Carlson has described himself as a constitutional conservative. He opposes abortion and supports the Second Amendment.