Gronstal was re-elected in 2004 with 12,480 votes (54%), defeating Republican opponent Loren Knauss. He won re-election again in 2008 with 58% of the votes. Prior to serving in the Senate, he served one term in the
Iowa House of Representatives. He also served as the chair of the
Pottawattamie County Democratic Party from 1986 to 1988. Gronstal supported efforts to increase
renewable fuels in Iowa and in 2006, Iowa passed the nation's strongest
ethanol legislation. Gronstal also supported legislation to increase funding for
community colleges and school districts. After the
Iowa Supreme Court ruled in favor of
gay marriage in the
Varnum v. Brien decision in April 2009, Gronstal blocked a
Republican attempt to overturn the Court's decision with a
constitutional amendment. He released a
YouTube video in which he quoted his daughter's statement that opponents of
same-sex marriage in Iowa had already lost because her generation does not care about the issue. In 2016, he served as president of the
National Conference of State Legislatures. Gronstal lost his bid for re-election to the Iowa Senate in 2016, and was replaced by Republican
Dan Dawson. As of 2022, he is a lobbyist for the Iowa State Building and Construction Trades. ==References==