NAFUSA lifetime member Matthew G. Whitaker will make his official announcement to enter the U.S. Senate race on June 3. He is the first Republican in Iowa to declare his intentions for the seat currently held by Democrat Tom Harkin. Whitaker served as the United States Attorney for the Southern District of Iowa from 2005-2009. He played college football for the Iowa Hawkeyes, earning Academic All- American honors in 1992. He was the tight end on the 1990 Big Ten Champion football team and played in the 1991 Rose Bowl game.

Whitaker is the managing partner of Whitaker Hagenow & Gustoff LLP, a law firm located in Des Moines, Iowa. He is a graduate of the University of Iowa College of Law.