Iowa State students will have a chance to participate in an open forum with the leading candidates for Iowa’s secretary of agriculture position on Tuesday.

The candidates are Democrat Patty Judge of Albia and Republican Dan Brown of Iowa Falls.

Dale Cochran, who has held the position for the last 12 years, is not seeking re-election.

Judge is in her second term as a member of the Iowa Senate and owns a cow/calf farm operation in Monroe County.

Brown is the mayor of Iowa Falls and has been an agriculture instructor at Ellsworth Community College for 25 years.

The forum is being sponsored by the ISU Collegiate Farm Bureau Club as a prelude to Ag Week, Nov. 2-6.

Susan Thompson, adviser of the club, said while this is the first debate sponsored by the club, it has been working with Ag Week for a number of years.

“Every year, for the last several years, we’ve sponsored some symposium during Ag Week,” Thompson said. “Because of the election they wanted to do something sooner.”

Thompson said this event is an important one for the club.

“Normally we hold some kind of debate,” said Brad James, ISU Collegiate Farm Bureau Club president and senior in animal science. “Our topics vary from year to year.”

James said because this is an election year for the agricultural position and there are two new candidates, the club felt it was important for students to learn about the candidates.

“The collegiate club was formed as a vehicle for students to learn about ag issues in the political arena,” Thompson said. “The club follows issues in the Iowa Congress and in the U.S. legislature.

“We expect whoever is elected will have a big impact in years to come,” she said. “This fits in well with the club’s mission.”

This will be the first time in 12 years that Iowa will have a new secretary of agriculture, Thompson said. “It’s a real opportunity for someone new with new ideas,” she said.

Agriculture students may be particularly interested in the forum, Thompson said.

James said the forum is part of Ag Week, and agricultural clubs get points for having members attend the discussion.

“Students planning on a career in ag will be impacted by the office of agriculture,” Thompson said. “What happens in the Iowa Department of Agriculture will have an impact on their futures.”

At the forum, each candidate will be given 10 minutes for opening remarks and five minutes for closing statements. In the time between, both candidates will respond to questions from the audience.

“We’re hoping a lot of people will ask questions,” Thompson said. “We hope students will have a lot of questions of their own.”

She said the club hopes the debate will help students make an informed decision during the election.

“We hope students will listen and make up their minds on Nov. 3,” Thompson said.

“We’re trying to inform the voters as much as possible,” she said.

The forum will be held Tuesday from 7 to 8:30 p.m. in Room 175 of the Scheman Building. The public is welcome to attend and encouraged to ask questions.