Ken Rozenboom | |
|---|---|
 | |
| President pro tempore of theIowa Senate | |
| Assumed office January 13, 2025 | |
| Preceded by | Brad Zaun |
| Member of theIowa Senate | |
| Assumed office January 14, 2013 | |
| Preceded by | James F. Hahn |
| Constituency | 40th district (2013–2023) 19th district (2023–present) |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1951-09-05)September 5, 1951 (age 74) Oskaloosa, Iowa, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican |
| Spouse | Becky Goemaat[1] |
| Children | 2 |
| Education | Calvin University |
Kenneth John Rozenboom[1] (born September 5, 1951) is the Iowa State Senator from the19th District.[2] ARepublican, he has served in theIowa Senate since being elected in 2013.
Born inOskaloosa to Jacob Gerald Rozenboom (1922-2019) and Clarissa Henrietta (Stek) Rozenboom (1921-2022).[1][3] He has 5 siblings: Allan, Calvin, Norman, Kathleen and David.[1][3] His brother, Calvin, died in 2024.[4]
His parental grandparents were Geurt and Maatje (Van Snippenberg) Rozenboom, who came to the US in 1910 from theNetherlands.[3] They changed their names to George and Martha.[3]
His dad served in World War II in France, Germany and Belgium.[3] His mother was a schoolteacher.[1] His father died at age 97.[3] His mother died two months shy of her 101st birthday in 2022.[1]
In 1962, his brother Allan died at age 15, suffering fromHodgkin's Disease.[1][3] His mother's brother, Gordon, hadCerebral palsy.[1]
He was raised in Oskaloosa. Rozenboom graduated Pella Christian High School before attendingCalvin College in Michigan. After college, he returned home to work on the family farm along with also working as a sales production manager. He stepped into politics when he becameMahaska County Supervisor in 2010, going on to serve two years until 2012. He currently resides inOskaloosa with his wife Becky. They have two children and four grandchildren.[5]
Rozenboom served on the Natural Resources and Environment and the Rules and Administration Committees.[6] In 2014, in addition to his first two committees, he joined the Appropriations Committee, Veterans Affairs Committee and Agriculture and Natural Resources Appropriations Subcommittee.[7]
Rozenboom served on the Agriculture Committee, Natural Resources and Environment Committee, Appropriations Committee, Veterans Affairs Committee and Agriculture and Natural Resources Appropriations Subcommittee from 2013 to 2017.[6][7][8] From 2015 to 2017, he was Ranking Member of the Natural Resources and Environment Committee and Agriculture and Natural Resources Appropriations Subcommittee.[8] In 2019, he left the Veterans Affairs Committee and went to the Education Committee, in addition to the rest of his committees.[9] He was also the Vice Chair on the Agriculture and Natural Resources Appropriations Subcommittee and Chair of the Natural Resources and Environment Committee from 2019 to 2022.[9] In 2021, he was the Chair on the Agriculture and Natural Resources Appropriations Subcommittee.[10]
In the 2020 session, Rozenboom served on the Natural Resources and Environment, Agriculture, Appropriations, Education, and State Government, Agriculture Committees and Natural Resources Appropriations Subcommittee and Flood Mitigation Board.[2]
In the 2023-2024 session, Rozenboom was the Chair of the Education Committee, Vice Chair of the Agriculture Committee and member of the Natural Resources and Environment and Transportation Committees.[11]
In the 2025 session, Rozenboom served as a member on the Natural Resources and Environment committee, Rules and Administration committee, Transportation committee; as Vice Chair on the Agriculture committee and on the Ethics committee and as Chair of the State Government committee.[12]
In March 2019, Rozenboom was awarded the Herbert Hoover Award for his years of service to the community.[13]
In December 2021, due to redistricting, Rozenboom announced that he would not seek re-election to the Iowa Senate following changes caused by redistricting which affected his current representation.[14] In February 2022, he reversed his decision and ran in the 2022 Senate election for the 19th district.[15] He subsequently won by over 30%.[16]
On January 13, 2025, SenatorTim Kraayenbrink nominated Rozenboom to be the President pro tempore of the Senate, which he was elected unanimously.[17][18]
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Ken Rozenboom | 17,628 | 57.25% | ||
| Democratic | Tim Tripp | 11,670 | 37.90% | ||
| Write-ins, Under and over votes | 1,495 | 4.85% | |||
| Turnout | 30,793 | 100.00% | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Ken Rozenboom | 23,768 | 77.2% | ||
| Democratic | No candidate | 0% | |||
| Write-ins, Under and over votes | 7,016 | 22.79% | |||
| Turnout | 30,784 | 100.00% | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Ken Rozenboom | 22,022 | 67.69% | ||
| Democratic | Lance Roorda | 8,760 | 26.91% | ||
| Write-ins, Under and over votes | 1,760 | 5.4% | |||
| Turnout | 32,542 | 100.00% | |||
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Republican | Ken Rozenboom | 18,118 | 67.12% | ||
| Democratic | Tyler Stewart | 8,283 | 30.69% | ||
| Write-ins, Under and over votes | 589 | 2.1% | |||
| Turnout | 26,990 | 100.00% | |||
| Iowa Senate | ||
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| Preceded by | President pro tempore of theIowa Senate 2025–present | Incumbent |
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| Supreme Court (appointed, retained by election) |
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