Meet Democrat Latifah Faisal and Republican Kirk Nesset, candidates running to represent west Ames and Iowa State on the Story County Board of Supervisors.
Faisal, running for reelection, served on the Board of Supervisors for six years and worked at the Story County Attorney’s Office for 17 years.
“I worked for the county for a long time already, and I had always thought about running for office but hadn’t,” Faisal said. “The county attorney at the time really encouraged me and pushed me to think seriously about running, and there was a position that came open on the board that would allow for an appointment to be made, and I threw my name in for that.”
Faisal did not win that first appointment, but tried again the next time around, got it, and has been in the position ever since as a supervisor for the Story County Board of Supervisors.
“I learned a lot in those couple of months, and that convinced me that maybe I really would be good at this job and I would actually really want to do it,” Faisal said. “I’m glad I tried it out and later got it. It has been amazing, I love this job.”
If reelected, Faisal aims to continue improving the lives of Story County residents.
“I want to continue to protect our natural resources and make sure that Story County is an amazing place to live and grow up. It was when I was a kid, it is now and I want to make sure that it continues to be that for my children and grandchildren,” Faisal said.
Nesset currently works three different jobs. He owns and manages several investment properties, works as a field appraiser for the City of Ames and owns K and R Lawn Care Inc.
“I’ve always been interested in the kind of growth and ways to improve Story County and the city of Ames and the communities around us, especially since my wife is from Maxwell,” Nesset said. “I think working for the city for the last four and a half years opened my eyes a little bit more than if I was somebody normal off the street running for political office, so being exposed a lot more to this.”
Nesset plans to ensure Story County has strong leadership.
“The biggest thing is growth, for both the small and big communities,” Nesset said. “It’s making sure that we have strong leadership that has been around long enough to know what Story County and all the communities around here could be. We need to realize we have one of the greatest assets the state offers, and it’s a university, and we aren’t maximizing that resource and so if we maximize that, then everybody wins, including the surrounding communities.”
Election day is Nov. 3. To learn more about the candidates for the District 3 Story County Board of Supervisors, please visit their respective webpages: Latifah Faisal and Kirk Nesset.