Jerry Behn

Who is Jerry Behn?

Jerry Behn is the Iowa State Senator from the 24th District and minority leader in the Iowa Senate. A Republican, he has served in the Iowa Senate since 1997, and served as a Boone County Supervisor from 1995 to 1996.

Behn currently serves on several committees in the Iowa Senate - the Appropriations committee; the Commerce committee; the State Government committee; the Environment & Energy Independence committee, where he is the ranking member, and the Ethics committee, where he is the ranking member. He also serves on the Administration and Regulation Appropriations Subcommittee.

Behn was last re-elected in 2008 with 22,970 votes, defeating Democratic opponent, former Iowa Senator Albert Sorensen.

Behn was a candidate for the Republican nomination for governor in 2010 but withdrew, endorsing Terry Branstad. His platform included promoting fiscal restraint, preserving right-to-work laws, and allowing Iowans to vote on a constitutional amendment defining marriage as between one man and one woman. He called for voters to vote against retention for those Iowa Supreme Court justices who decided that Iowa's Defense of Marriage Act was unconstitutional in Varnum v. Brien.