KDSN Radio

Arkansas, Massachusetts and now Iowa are the only three states that have two women at the top of state government.

During an interview with Radio Iowa on Wednesday, Governor Kim Reynolds said Chris Cournoyer brings a long list of skills and attributes to the role of lieutenant governor and she didn’t limit her search for a lieutenant governor to women.

“It wasn’t intentional, I’ll say that. Neither is my strong-willed team that I have at the Capitol or my cabinet that’s led by a lot of strong, capable, intelligent women as well,” Reynolds said. “Chris just checked a lot of boxes and she really complements what we’re trying to do here.”

Reynolds has asked Cournoyer to review state-led efforts over the past 11 years to encourage students to seek careers in science, technology, engineering, and math and update the programs for the next decade. Cournoyer has led STEM efforts in the Quad Cities and has taught robotics and computer coding.

“Kids aren’t afraid of technology and so when they bring these STEM programs into the schools, they just really embrace it,” said Counoyer, who joined Reynolds in the governor’s formal office for a joint interview with Radio Iowa.

The governor said Cournoyer’s background in computer programming and artificial intelligence will be another asset in efforts to modernize state government operations.

“We want to make sure we’re bringing AI to state government,” Reynolds said, “but we want to make sure we’re doing it responsibly and we’re doing it right.”

Cournoyer is among legislators from around the country who recently served on a task force on cybersecurity and artificial intelligence. Cournoyer said there has to be a human component to A.I., to monitor the data that’s collected and ensure the outcomes aren’t skewed. “And then we really want to make sure that when we’re looking at data and how we’re running those algorithms and developing them that we’re doing it in a very ethical manner,” Cournoyer added.

Reynolds described herself and Cournoyer as “competitive people” — both mentioned they played girls sports in high school, but when asked about a run for re-election in 2026, Reynolds said she hasn’t decided whether the Reynolds-Cournoyer team will be on Iowa’s ballot.

“Honestly, right now I’m trying to get through Christmas, figure out what the (state) budget looks like for the next legislative cycle,” Reynolds said. “I’m very excited about some of the things that we’re working on.”

Reynolds will deliver the annual “Condition of the State” address to legislators on January 14 and release details of her 2025 policy agenda.

For the past 15 weeks, Iowa did not have a lieutenant governor. Reynolds waited until after the November election to begin the search to replace Adam Gregg, who resigned as lieutenant governor on September 2. Reynolds told Radio Iowa she’s “had my eye on Chris” for a while and she described Cournoyer as the type of :get-it-done: person who’s a good fit for her governing team.

“It’s just a really added bonus that she’s also a woman and we’ll continue to be role models for young girls all across the state,” Reynolds said.

Cournoyer added: “I’ve had so many role models in my life, Governor Reynolds being one who has just really inspired me and I’ll take that responsibility very seriously, knowing that somebody might be watching how I conduct myself and making sure that I’m doing that with high standards.”

Cournoyer has been a state senator for the past six years, but resigned Monday morning just before being sworn in as lieutenant governor. The governor has not yet set the date for a special election in the state senate district the includes Le Claire, where Cournoyer lives, as well as the cities of Clinton, Maquoketa and DeWitt.