Iowa Secretary of State
Paul D. Pate of Cedar Rapids was elected to serve as the thirty-second Iowa Secretary of State. He is Iowa's Commissioner of Elections. Pate also oversees Business Services for the State of Iowa. A recognized business leader by the Small Business Administration, Pate is the owner of a paving construction firm and was recognized as a Patriotic Employer by the National Committee for Employer Support of the Guard and Reserve. Pate also served two terms as Mayor of Cedar Rapids from 2002 –2006. While Mayor, Pate was elected President of the non-partisan Iowa League of Cities representing over 870 municipalities. He previously served with Governor Branstad as Iowa Secretary of State from 1995-1999. Paul was elected twice to the Iowa State Senate representing NE Cedar Rapids, Marion and parts of Linn, Buchanan and Delaware Counties from 1989-1995. Upon returning to the Secretary of State's Office in January 2015, Pate set out to institute a Safe at Home program in Iowa. Safe at Home is an address confidentiality program for survivors of domestic violence, sexual abuse, trafficking and stalking. The bill passed both chambers of the Iowa Legislature unanimously and was signed into law by Governor Terry Branstad in May. Secretary Pate's Office administers the program. Pate also instituted online voter registration in Iowa in January 2016. More than 70,000 Iowans used the system to register to vote in its first year. Paul Pate was selected to participate in the prestigious 2015 Toll Fellowship Program. It is a leadership development program for state government officials, bringing 48 of the nation’s top officials from all three branches of state government together for an intensive six-day intellectual boot camp.[17] Google awarded Secretary Pate in July 2015 for his efforts to increase voter participation in Iowa. The award was presented during the National Association of Secretaries of State's annual conference.[18] Secretary Pate was named the co-chair of the National Association of Secretaries of State’s Standing Committee on Business Services in July 2015.[19] Pate was named the co-chair of the NASS Business ID Theft Task Force in March 2016.[20] Secretary Pate was elected the Midwestern Region Vice-president of the National Association of Secretaries of State in July 2016. Pate also serves on the Council of State Governments’ International Relations Committee. The National State Boards of Education rewarded Secretary Pate with the Award for Outstanding Leadership in Voter Education in March 2017. Pate was recognized for his efforts in conducting two statewide Iowa Youth Straw Polls and the Iowa Youth Caucus. Both straw polls included more than 58,000 students from more than 250 schools statewide. Paul Pate is a lifelong Iowa resident, born in Ottumwa, growing up in Linn County. His family includes his wife Jane, three children and five grandchildren who all reside in Iowa.
