CoBank announces special election for two board seats in 2027
DENVER (August 12, 2026) – CoBank, a cooperative bank serving agribusinesses, rural infrastructure providers and Farm Credit associations throughout the United States, today announced that its board of directors has approved holding a special election in 2027 for the one stockholder-one-vote seat in the Central region and the modified equity seat in the West region. Each of those seats have a term expiring at the end of 2026.
The special election will be held concurrently with CoBank's regular 2027 director elections. Successful candidates will serve the remainder of the terms for those seats, which expire on December 31, 2030. During 2027, the current directors occupying those seats, Kevin Still and Sureena Bains Thiara, will continue to serve as holdover directors until the successors elected through the special election are seated on January 1, 2028.
The decision to hold a special election follows the 2026 stockholder vote in which stockholders did not approve proposed governance bylaws amendments that would have eliminated the two seats as part of a broader board restructuring recommendation. As communicated to stockholders in January 2026, the two seats were not included in the 2026 election cycle because the two seats were recommended to be eliminated. The 2026 nomination process was completed prior to the conclusion of the stockholder vote.
"As a customer-owned financial cooperative, CoBank is committed to listening to and acting on the voices of its stockholders," said Brandon Wittman, chair of the CoBank board of directors. "The board believes holding a special election is the appropriate path forward for the two board seats in question. We also extend our appreciation to Kevin and Sureena for continuing their service on the CoBank board as holdover directors."
Additional information regarding the nomination process and election timeline will be provided to eligible voting stockholders in advance of the 2027 election.
About CoBank
CoBank is a cooperative bank serving vital industries across rural America. The bank provides loans, leases, export financing and other financial services to agribusinesses and rural power, water and communications providers in all 50 states. The bank also provides wholesale loans and other financial services to affiliated Farm Credit associations serving almost 80,000 farmers, ranchers and other rural borrowers in 23 states around the country. CoBank is a member of the Farm Credit System, a nationwide network of banks and retail lending associations chartered to support the borrowing needs of U.S. agriculture, rural infrastructure and rural communities. Headquartered outside Denver, Colorado, CoBank serves customers from regional banking centers across the U.S. and also maintains an international representative office in Singapore.