R.I.P. Jan Mickelson, Longtime Iowa Talk Radio Host

Jan Mickelson (1949-2023)

Jan Mickelson, a longtime conservative radio host on WHO in Des Moines, died over the weekend. He was 74-years-of-age.

The Des Moines Register reports Mickelson's wife, Suzy, announced his death in a Facebook post Sunday after earlier writing that he had been admitted to the hospital in critical condition, with low blood pressure and failing kidney function.

"Jan went home to be with the Lord last night. Our family is grateful for all the warm wishes, love and support. Your kindness and prayers have sustained us these last few days," she wrote. "Jan loved to entertain, inform, and educate. He loved his listeners, all of them. His greatest legacy is the folks he inspired."

Prominent Iowa Republicans and conservatives posted remembrances of him to social media in the day following his death.

"Tremendous friend and support to many more than just me," wrote U.S. Rep. Zach Nunn. "I'm sad but also pleased he's with the Lord. Truly a gentleman and a Christian patriot."

Radio host Steve Deace called Mickelson "one of my mentors" and "one of the most brilliant men I've ever known." And Shane Vander Hart, an Iowa-based conservative blogger who runs The Iowa Torch, wrote that Mickelson was a "one-of-a-kind radio personality."

"Jan asked probing, challenging questions," Vander Hart wrote. "He would sometimes hold guests' feet to the fire, but he was never uncivil and always charitable."

Mickelson established himself as a mainstay on Iowa's conservative talk radio circuit, hosting regularly from 1988 until 2015. He returned to the airwaves briefly after suffering a stroke but retired shortly after.

He frequently sat down with Iowa Republicans and presidential candidates as they visited the state to court support in the caucuses, asking questions while weighing in on the news of the day — and sometimes creating headlines himself.