Michael Gronstal
Michael E. Gronstal is a former Iowa State Senator who represented the 8th District in the Iowa Senate. He served from 1985-2017 and was the majority leader and chairman of the Rules and Administration committee. He was also chairman of the DLCC, the national organization to elect Democratic state legislators.
Gronstal supported efforts to increase renewable fuels in Iowa and in 2006, Iowa passed the nation’s strongest ethanol legislation. Gronstal also supported legislation to increase funding for community colleges and school districts. After the Iowa Supreme Court ruled in favor of gay marriage in the Varnum v. Brien decision in April 2009, Gronstal blocked a Republican attempt to overturn the Court's decision with a constitutional amendment. He released a YouTube video in which he quoted his daughter's statement that opponents of same-sex marriage in Iowa had already lost because her generation does not care about the issue.
Mike Gronstal lost his bid for re-election in 2016.
Gronstal was re-elected in 2004 with 12,480 votes, defeating Republican opponent Loren Knauss. He won re-election again in 2008 with 58% of the votes.
Gronstal received his B.A. from Antioch College. Prior to serving in the Senate, he served one term in the Iowa House of Representatives. He also served as the chair of the Pottawattamie County Democratic Party from 1986 to 1988. Senator Gronstal and his wife, Connie, have two daughters: Kate, who is a transportation engineer at Stantec in Chicago; and Sara, who is currently Director of Forensics at Eastern Illinois University.
