House ag committee leaders survive election

The results of the November 8 election for congressional seats should have little to no impact on the leadership of the U.S. House and Senate agriculture committees.

Roy Graber Headshot
Rep. Mike Conaway | Photo courtesy of U.S. House of Representatives
Rep. Mike Conaway | Photo courtesy of U.S. House of Representatives

House Agriculture Committee leaders facing re-election challenges on November 8 were able to retain their spots in the U.S. House of Representatives.

Rep. K. Michael (Mike) Conaway, R-Texas, will return to Washington after garnering about 90 percent of the votes in his district. He was being challenged by independent candidate Nicholas Landholt. He did not have an opponent that was a Democrat.

Conaway has served as chairman of the House Agriculture Committee since being named to that position two years ago. He took over the leadership of the committee as Rep. Frank Lucas, R-Oklahoma, had to step down from the leadership position because of term limit rules. Lucas, who remains on the committee, cruised to another two years in Congress, defeating Democratic Challenger Frankie Robbins by a 78-22 percent margin.

With Republicans retaining the majority in the House, Conaway is expected to retain his chairmanship.

House Agriculture Committee Ranking Member Rep. Collin Peterson, D-Minnesota, also gained approval from voters, although the margin was smaller. He received 52 percent of the votes. Peterson was being challenged by Republican Dave Hughes.

Senate Agriculture Committee

Neither of the two most prominent members of the Senate Agriculture Nutrition and Forestry Committee were up for re-election. Sen. Pat Roberts, R-Kansas, will not see his term end until 2020, while Sen. Debbie Stabenow, D-Michigan, won’t be up for re-election until 2018.

Roberts assumed the chairmanship in 2014, after Republicans regained the majority in the Senate. Stabenow was previously the chair.

Roberts previously served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1981 to 1997. During his final two years in the House, he was the chairman of its agriculture committee.

Republicans retained their majority in the Senate.

Page 1 of 1576
Next Page