JD Vance cited this ex-Kansas official to back up immigrant housing claims. Who is she?

As Republican Sen. JD Vance went on the attack against Democrats at the vice presidential debate, he charged that housing has become unaffordable in communities across the country because of an influx of migrants competing “with Americans for scarce homes.”

To bolster his claims, the Ohio senator afterward posted a speech by Federal Reserve Governor Michelle Bowman, who told a gathering of bankers in May that the inflow of new immigrants in some areas “could result” in rising rents.

Right now, Bowman isn’t well known except in Washington – and Topeka. That could change.

Over the past month, Bowman’s profile has been rising among those who follow the moves of the Federal Reserve, the United States’ central banking system, led by a board of governors that sets monetary policy, including interest rates. The 53-year-old in September dissented from the Fed’s decision to cut rates by half a percentage point, becoming the first Fed governor to dissent on an interest rate decision in 19 years.

But Bowman also has deep ties to Kansas. Before former President Donald Trump nominated her to the Fed board in 2018, she was the state bank commissioner, the top banking official in Kansas. Bowman, known as “Miki” to many in Kansas, was also previously an executive at her family’s 142-year-old bank in Council Grove, a town of about 2,100 southwest of Topeka.

As Trump seeks another term in the White House, Bowman’s name has been in the mix of speculation about who the former president would consider for Fed chair if he wins again. Just this week, The New York Times asked whether she could be in line for a more powerful role in the event of a Trump victory, and Vance’s citation of one of her speeches has only fueled talk about her chances.

Whoever wins the presidency will have an opportunity to name a new chair – one of the most powerful economic positions in the world. Trump nominated the current Fed chair, Jay Powell, in 2017 but grew critical of him. President Joe Biden then renominated Powell in 2022 for a term that will expire in 2026.

“She would be a strong candidate for Federal Reserve chair if Trump were to return to the presidency,” Emre Kuvvet, a professor of finance at Nova Southeastern University who has written about the Fed, wrote in an email.

Bowman’s economic philosophy aligns closely with a commitment to stable monetary policy, Kuvvet said. Still, he cautioned that other contenders shouldn’t be ruled out. They include Judy Lynn Shelton, who Trump previously nominated to the Fed in 2019. The U.S. Senate failed to confirm her, however, amid concerns that she held extreme views on economic policy.

The prospect that Bowman could be nominated – or simply in the mix of possible names – for Fed chair if Trump wins is encouraging to Kansans who say she would raise the profile of the state and the attention paid to banking in small and rural communities.

When the U.S. Senate voted 64-34 to confirm Bowman, she filled a board seat designed to focus on community banking. The role makes Bowman an advocate in Fed decision making for the often-small banks that dot cities and towns in Kansas and across the country.

“I would love to see her as the Chairman of the Federal Reserve,” former Kansas Gov. Sam Brownback said in a statement. Brownback, a Republican in office from 2011 to 2018, appointed Bowman as state bank commissioner in 2017; the Kansas Senate confirmed her unanimously.

“She would bring the perspective and common sense that comes with experience of what Fed policy does to real working people. She would be a great pick.”

Sen. Jerry Moran, a Kansas Republican who championed her nomination to the Fed, said Bowman remains rooted in Kansas.

“The perspective she brings to the table as a banker, as a regulator, as a public servant, as a mother and as a community leader is exactly the kind of perspective our country and our economy need at the Federal Reserve Board,” Moran said in a statement.

In public remarks, Bowman has spoken about the importance of regulators keeping in mind the challenges that rules and regulations can pose for community banks. She has said her time as a compliance officer at her family’s bank, Farmers & Drovers, was her most challenging role at the bank as she worked with a small team to implement new regulations in the wake of the financial crisis.

“Although the crisis revealed weaknesses in the U.S. financial system that needed to be addressed, I have witnessed firsthand how the regulatory environment created in the aftermath of the crisis has disadvantaged community banks,” Bowman said in her opening statement at her Senate confirmation hearing.

“If confirmed, I will bring this perspective to my work at the Board to ensure that rules preserve the resiliency of the financial system, but are appropriately tailored to the size, complexity, and risk of an institution.”

Bowman declined to comment for this story.

Spotlight on Bowman

Bowman’s tenure as a Fed governor generated little widespread publicity until recently.

On Sept. 18, the Fed’s Board of Governors voted to lower the target range for the federal funds rate – which drives interest rates – by half a percentage point, to 4.75-5%. The vote marked the first time the Fed had lowered interest rates since the central bank quickly ratcheted them up in 2022 and 2023 to combat inflation in the wake of the pandemic.

Eleven board members voted for the rate cut, which reflected a view that the Fed needed to begin to ensure it doesn’t cool the economy too much as it tries to bring inflation back to its 2% target range. Current annual inflation is about 2.4%.

Only Bowman voted against the rate cut, becoming the first Fed governor to vote no on an interest rate action since 2005.

Bowman had wanted a more cautious quarter-point cut. In a statement two days later, she said inflation remains a concern despite progress made in lowering it. Bowman said that she sees “the risk that the Committee’s larger policy action could be interpreted as a premature declaration of victory on our price stability mandate.”

Kuvvet, the economics professor, said Bowman’s vote was notable but not unexpected.

“She has a more hawkish stance on inflation control, reflecting her concern that lowering rates too soon could weaken the Fed’s efforts to keep inflation in check,” Kuvvet wrote in an email. “Bowman consistently prioritizes long-term price stability over short-term goals like reducing unemployment.”

Less than two weeks later, Vance posted a link to a speech Bowman had delivered in May at the Massachusetts Bankers Association annual convention in Florida. The post, on X, came after Vance had finished debating Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz, the Democratic vice presidential nominee.

During the debate, Vance had defended his focus on Springfield, Ohio, where thousands of Haitian immigrants – who are in the country legally under a temporary protected status – have settled in recent years. Vance and Trump have falsely claimed Haitian immigrants in Springfield are eating pets.

“Look, in Springfield, Ohio and in communities all across this country, you’ve got schools that are overwhelmed, you’ve got hospitals that are overwhelmed, you have got housing that is totally unaffordable because we brought in millions of illegal immigrants to compete with Americans for scarce homes,” Vance said.

Bowman’s speech was much more hedged.

Toward the end of her remarks at the bankers convention, Bowman said “there is a risk that strong consumer demand for services, increased immigration, and continued labor market tightness could lead to persistently high core services inflation.”

“Given the current low inventory of affordable housing, the inflow of new immigrants to some geographic areas could result in upward pressure on rents, as additional housing supply may take time to materialize,” she said.

The speech immediately made it into coverage of the debate and its aftermath.

But Gary Richardson, an economics professor at the University of California-Irvine who has studied the history of the Federal Reserve, cautioned against over-interpreting Vance’s shoutout.

Trump enjoys pitting officials against each other, he said, and the former president is angry with Powell for supporting a rate cut close to the election. Last week, Trump said the Federal Reserve had lowered interest rates “a little too quickly.”

“I’m sure they might talk about her more,” Richardson said. “They’re always looking to stir up emotions.”

Understanding Kansas

Former Kansas Treasurer Lynn Rogers said Bowman’s appointment to the Fed has been good for rural areas of the state, saying she is someone who “understood what we’re going through here in Kansas.”

At the time Bowman was confirmed as state bank commissioner, Rogers was a Democratic state senator who participated in her Kansas Senate confirmation hearing. He said that while “of course, I have an opinion” about who should be naming Federal Reserve governors – a reference to the presidency – Bowman “was a straight shooter” who impressed him.

“It’s extremely helpful to have somebody who understands the smaller bank perspective,” Rogers said, adding that big banks and financial institutions have a large voice at the Fed.

While Bowman was born in Hawaii, she graduated high school in Council Grove and holds degrees from the University of Kansas and Washburn University in Topeka.

She has a history in and around Republican politics and officials, having interned for former Sen. Bob Dole in the mid-90s and worked for the Federal Emergency Management Agency during former President George W. Bush’s administration. She was also an advisor to Homeland Security Secretary Tom Ridge during the Bush administration.

Bowman spent several years in the 2000s in London after her husband, Wesley Bowman, secured a job there. Wes Bowman now works for Stand Together, a nonprofit network founded by Charles Koch. The Star in 2019 reported that Michelle Bowman remained active in party politics during her time in the United Kingdom, chairing the group Republicans Abroad UK.

Bowman returned to Council Grove in 2010 to work at Farmers & Drovers. She left the bank in 2017 after Brownback nominated her as state bank commissioner.

“Before any decision-making went through, she always wanted to listen to what everybody had to say and learn all she could about the subject,” Angela Schwerdtfeger, who worked with Bowman on several local committees in Council Grove, told The Star in 2019.

At a recent speech in St. Louis , Bowman didn’t directly reference her vote against the half-point rate cut that had put her at odds with the rest of the Federal Reserve board.

But speaking about community banking, Bowman called policy disagreements “a healthy part of the process” even as she emphasized the need to build consensus “when we can.”

“At a minimum, we must understand and respect our counterparts’ and colleagues’ viewpoints,” she said. “Ultimately, we all share the same goal of promoting a safe and sound banking system.”

The Star’s Daniel Desrochers contributed reporting