Capital Clicks

Biden nominates former Iowa Gov. Culver for federal agriculture mortgage board

By: Katie Akin - July 15, 2021 4:15 pm

Former Gov. Chet Culver, pictured here with his wife, Mari Culver, has been nominated to the board of directors for Farmer Mac. (Photo by Phil Roeder)

President Joe Biden has nominated former Iowa Gov. Chet Culver to the board of directors for the Federal Agricultural Mortgage Corporation, also known as Farmer Mac.

Culver is a Democrat who served as Iowa’s governor from 2007 to 2011. Biden touted Culver’s record as governor in announcing his nomination: “Under his leadership, Iowa successfully managed a $6 billion annual budget, earned a ‘Triple A’ bond rating, and built up one of the largest budget surpluses in the nation.”

Prior to his term as governor, Culver served as the Iowa secretary of state for eight years. After leaving the governor’s office, Culver founded the Chet Culver group, a renewable energy consulting firm.

Farmer Mac is a federally chartered organization created in 1987 to increase rural access to capital. The president is responsible for nominating five members of the board. Shareholders choose the other 10. Culver previously served on the board under former President Barack Obama.

The Senate must confirm Culver’s nomination.

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Katie Akin

Reporter Katie Akin began her career as an intern at PolitiFact, debunking viral fake news and fact-checking state and national politicians. She moved to Iowa in 2019 for a politics internship at the Des Moines Register, where she assisted with Iowa Caucus coverage, multimedia projects and the Register’s Iowa Poll. She became the Register’s retail reporter in early 2020, chronicling the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Central Iowa’s restaurants and retailers.