Gov. Kim Reynolds announced today the appointment of Chris Cournoyer as Iowa’s 48th lieutenant governor. The announcement comes after former Lt. Gov. Adam Gregg stepped down in September to become the next president and CEO of the Iowa Bankers Association.

A Le Claire resident, Cournoyer was elected to the Iowa Senate in 2018.

In the Senate, she chaired the chamber’s inaugural Technology Committee, including writing and managing the consumer data privacy legislation that Reynolds signed into law in March 2023. Her other past committee appointments included chairing the Education Budget Committee, serving as vice chair of the State Government Committee and sitting on the Education, Natural Resources and Environment, Transportation, and Ways and Means committees. She has also served on the Governor’s STEM Advisory Council.

“First and foremost, [Cournoyer] has the character, judgement, and ability needed to serve as governor in case I were ever unable to — qualities that also make her ideally suited to support our work on a day-to-day basis,” Reynolds said in a prepared statement. “I can’t wait to deploy Chris’ extensive experience on key legislative committees, including Ways and Means, and expertise in technology, innovation, and artificial intelligence on a wide range of issues important to Iowans.”

Cournoyer’s experience in the technology sector includes working as a senior consultant in the technology division at Andersen Consulting, the Fortune 500 firm that later became Accenture. She also works as an independent website designer and developer. Cournoyer holds a bachelor’s degree in computer science from the University of Texas.

She is a former member of the Quad Cities Engineering and Science Council and a former school board president. She has also served as a reserve sheriff deputy for the Scott County Sheriff Department and is a robotics and coding teacher in her community.

“I’m profoundly honored to serve as lieutenant governor, and Iowans can be confident that I will always approach the role with all the seriousness it deserves,” Cournoyer said in a prepared statement. “I couldn’t be more excited to join Governor Reynolds’ team and do my part to implement her bold agenda for our state.”