Kiernan as Iowa Democratic Party chair

Souces indicate Des Moines City Councilman Michael Kiernan is Governor Chet Culver's choice to be the Iowa Democratic Party's chairman.  Dave Price of WHO-TV blogs about it here.  Since there are no permalinks on Dave's blog and you may be reading this in March when the post has rotated off the WHO-TV website, here's what he wrote:

"Democratic sources confirm to me Michael Kiernan is expected to be "elected" the new chairman of the Iowa Democratic Party this Saturday. Of course, the State Central Committee elects the chair Saturday. But Governor Chet Culver more than has his say in this. And apparently he has had his say."

Kiernan was elected to the Des Moines City Council in May of 2004. His current term ends in January, 2010. That means both he and Culver are up for reelection in 2010. While Kiernan and his wife (WHO-TV anchor Erin Kiernan) live in the historic Sherman Hill Neighborhood of Des Moines, Kiernan is an "at large" member of the city council; rather than representing a specific district or "ward" of the city, he represents all Des Moines citizens.

Kiernan father, Gary, was a member of the Madison County Board of Supervisors and his mother, Joan, once worked as a secretary for the Iowa Democratic Party, so he grew up around politics. 

As a young adult, Kiernan worked behind the scenes in Iowa politics. Kiernan served as newly-elected Iowa Secretary of Agriculture Patty Judge's communications director, but he had a very brief tenure in the IDALS (Iowa Department of Agriculture and Land Stewardship).  Judge, as you may know, is Culver's lieutenant governor.  Kiernan managed Culver's 1998 campaign for Iowa Secretary of State.  Kiernan had previously managed one of former Des Moines Mayor Preston Daniels' successful campaigns. 

Kiernan was one of the co-developers of the Metro Market, an indoor farmers' market, which opened in Sherman Hill in the fall of 2003.  He left the business about a year later to run for the city council.  The Metro Market eventually closed and is now the site of a gourmet grocery and restaurant known as the Gateway Market.

For those of you on Facebook, Kiernan has a page. Maybe he and recently-elected Republican Party of Iowa chairman Matt Strawn will be friends? (That's a Facebook-ism for those of you who aren't on Facebook.)