Ken Carlson

Ken Carlson (born 1951) is an American politician, retired teacher and retired farmer who has represented the 13th district in the Iowa House of Representatives since January 2023, which consists of 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 is a member of the Agriculture, Economic Growth and Technology, Veterans Affairs, and Natural Resources committees, the lattermost of which he serves as vice chair.

Carlson endorsed Ron DeSantis for president in 2023. In 2024 he announced that he will not seek reelection.

Carlson has described himself as a constitutional conservative. He has said that his priorities include education, taxpayer dollars and eminent domain for CO2 pipelines. He opposes abortion and supports the Second Amendment.

Personal life
Carlson has a wife, Carolyn, and three adult children. He resides in Onawa, Iowa. He is a retired farmer and a former math and science public school teacher, having taught for 12 years. He is also an on-call preacher at the Onawa First Christian Church and is a member of the Monona County Farm Bureau, Iowa Corn Growers Association, Iowa Soybean Association and Western Iowa Experimental Farm.