A special district convention chose Stan Gustafson as the Republican candidate for the January 7 special election in Iowa House district 25. Speaking by telephone today, Gustafson said he was nominated on the first round of balloting after three candidates addressed the delegates: himself, Joan Acela (a three-time Iowa House hopeful), and Kyle McCullough. According to McCullough’s LinkedIn profile, he is president and CEO of the web hosting and consulting company HostIowa.net. He worked as a legislative aide in the Iowa House from 2002 to 2004 and was the Republican Party of Iowa’s director of information technology from 2004 to 2007.
A press release containing background on Gustafson is after the jump. Democrats will choose a nominee in House district 25 next week.
December 2 press release from Stan Gustafson:
Gustafson Nominated In House District 25 Special Election
(NORWALK) – Stan Gustafson (R-Cumming), a longtime Republican and active Party participant, was elected earlier tonight as the Republican candidate for State Representative in House District 25. The special election was initiated to replace the vacancy created by newly-elected State Senator Julian Garrett. Governor Branstad announced last month that the date of the special election will be Tuesday, January 7th.
Gustafson graduated from high school in California and then attended the University of California at Berkeley, graduating with a degree in finance. After graduation, his participation in Navel ROTC led him to a 2nd Lieutenant Commission in the Marine Corps. He served in Vietnam and after completing his tour overseas, he participated in the Reserves for the next 23 years, retiring as a Lt. Colonel.
Once back stateside, Gustafson used the GI Bill to attend law school at night while working for Mattel Toys in California. Eventually he opened his own practice focusing on International Law. He enjoyed a long and successful career. Upon retirement, he and his wife, Betty, a native of Dallas County, moved back to Cumming to be closer to their grandchildren.
“Retirement doesn’t mean sitting idle. There is much work to be done to make our great state even better. I look forward to meeting with Iowans in Madison and Warren Counties and taking their concerns to Des Moines,” said Gustafson. “We must work to make it easier to be an employer in the state, ensure Iowans are able to keep more of their hard-earned tax dollars and protect those who have so bravely defended our country.”
Gustafson has participated in Veteran activities in California and in Iowa. He is a supporter of Governor Branstad’s new initiative, Home Base Iowa, and is a member of the Iowa Veterans Council.
3 Comments
Dem convo next Monday
and I’ve heard zero names
jdeeth Tue 3 Dec 12:14 PM
hard to recruit candidates
for a district like this. Uphill for any Democrat.
desmoinesdem Tue 3 Dec 7:34 PM
Money talks
Does Gustafson regard the election as similar to a skier’s ‘bunny slope’?
Can’t decide if this is hubris, possible overconfidence(hopefully), or just a demonstration of how much money is being spent for Mr.Gustafson-the GOP candidate for Iowa House 25. Got my second mailing (in consecutive days) Thursday from his campaign. Obviously, the list they used didn’t exclude Democrats and did have name and address (as opposed to a blanket mailing to every address without names). Anywho, here’s the quote that stood out to me:
“I wil not be interrupting your family during the holidays but wanted to remind you to request an absentee ballot or mark your calendars to vote on Election Day”
A bold statement. Nevermind that door-stuffer material is already showing up in the doors of Winterset homes. And will he stick to that pledge?
hvlundberg7328 Fri 13 Dec 8:04 AM