Meet Benjamin Larson

Roots in Rural America

Benjamin Larson grew up on an acreage along the Platte River in rural Nebraska. His mother’s family were ranchers; his father’s side served as teachers, law enforcement officers, and public employees. That upbringing instilled a deep respect for the land, local communities, and the working families who sustain them—values that would shape his path into public service and healthcare.

A Career Built on Service

At 16, Ben lost his father to an aggressive form of cancer. The compassionate care his father received from emergency medical technicians set Ben on a career in medicine. He graduated from Westside High School in Omaha in 2010 and completed the Paramedicine and Emergency Medical Sciences program at Metropolitan Community College in 2013, beginning more than a decade of frontline work in small-town America.

On the Front Lines in Iowa

That experience carried Ben to Select Specialty ICU during the COVID-19 pandemic, while he worked toward his nursing degree. His team specialized in ventilator care and advanced respiratory therapies, maintaining rigorous safety protocols under extraordinary pressure. By the end of 2020, they had cared for families who lost multiple members to the virus.

In 2021, Ben moved to Council Bluffs—returning to the area where his parents grew up—and enrolled in the RN program at Iowa Western Community College. He worked full-time while completing his degree, graduating in 2023 with an Associate’s in Nursing. Today, he serves as a cardiac care nurse within the Nebraska Medical System, bringing that frontline perspective to patient care every day.

Why Ben Is Running

More than a decade in emergency medicine, ICU care, and specialty nursing has given Ben a clear view of what works in healthcare—and what is broken. He has watched hospitals close, ambulance services collapse, and insurance companies deny care to patients who desperately need it.

Ben is not running to discuss these problems in the abstract. He is running because he has lived them—and because Iowans deserve a representative who understands the real challenges facing working families, healthcare workers, and rural communities.

Beyond the Campaign

Outside of nursing and campaigning, Ben pursues astronomy, renewable energy, gardening, and hands-on projects in his garage. He is driven by a belief in building—whether an electric bike, a community garden, or a better future for Iowa.