Republican John Gilliland said he will work to make the Iowa secretary of state’s office an efficient link with the business world if he is elected to the position in November.

The Knoxville native is currently the deputy secretary of state, serving under fellow Republican Paul Pate. Gilliland said the on-the-job training he has received in the last four years has been a great help in his run for the secretary of state position.

Although he has not been on the ballot before, Gilliland said he would describe himself as “an incumbent” in many respects.

“I’ve been involved in a number of programs in the office, and people have gotten to know me through that experience,” he said.

“Experience is the key to our campaign,” Gilliland said. “Once people know of my background and experience, they’ve received our campaign very favorably.”

Gilliland said 75 percent of the work at the secretary of state’s office is geared toward providing services for businesses in Iowa. He cited utilizing technology and adapting to the global market as key issues in serving Iowa corporations.

“The greatest challenge for us in the future is to continue to move forward to provide service in a more efficient, fast-paced, streamlined environment,” he said.

Gilliland said the office receives 300-400 phone calls a day from people asking questions about businesses in Iowa. In this capacity as an aide to the business community, he said he could help provide important support for students.

“Most [students] are getting ready to enter the workforce,” he said. “The secretary of state’s job is dealing with business and improving the business climate so there are good jobs for those students after they graduate from school.”

In addition to these business responsibilities, the secretary of state is also the state commissioner of elections.

Gilliland said voter education in early years is the key to improving voter turnout among college students.

“If a person gets to college and they’re 19, and that’s the first time anybody’s ever said to them [they should vote], I don’t know that we’re going to have a lot of success with getting that person to vote,” he said. “We have to start earlier, younger.”

During his time with Pate in office, Gilliland said he helped create a program called Kids’ Caucus, which included curriculum to teach students about the presidential caucus.

“We need to continue to do a better job to educate people all through their schooling,” he said.