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Minnesota

MINNESOTA IS THE largest of the Midwestern states, the northernmost of the contiguous United States, and one of the most reliably Democratic states in presidential politics. Over the course of its history, Minnesota has gone from being one of the most solidly Republican states, to one of the most reliable bellwethers, to its present position as a solidly Democratic state. The last time Minnesota supported a Republican for president was in 1972, and even then it was the second strongest Democratic state.

Minnesota Territory was created in 1849, soon after Iowa and Wisconsin became states in 1846 and 1848, respectively, with their present borders. Minnesota Territory included not only what is now the state of Minnesota, but also those parts of the Dakotas east of the Missouri River. Democratic interests favored creating two states that would largely be east-west, while other interests favored creating two states that would largely be north-south.

The Farmer-Labor Party originated from the Progressive movement of the early 20th century. Similar movements began all over the country, but they only had lasting success in the three adjacent states: Minnesota, Wisconsin, and North Dakota. The presence of two left of center parties produced huge victories for Republicans 1920–44, although the Farmer-Labor Party had sporadic victories. The Democrats at this time were reduced to an urban, mostly Irish rump. In 1943, Hubert Humphrey ran for mayor of Minneapolis and lost to a Republican after a divisive primary contest involving the Farmer-Labor Party. As a result of this experience, Humphrey led an effort to unite the two parties, which succeeded in 1944 with the creation of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party (DFL).

The Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party

The DFL dominated Minnesota politics for the next several decades. During this time, a number of Minnesota Democrats rose to national prominence. Humphrey and Walter Mondale were vice presidents and Democratic presidential nominees. Eugene McCarthy launched a quixotic presidential bid. Orville Freeman and Bob Bergland served in presidential cabinets. Donald Fraser headed the Democratic Study Group, and led the Democratic Party commission that reformed the presidential nominating process. In this same period, and partly as a reaction to Democratic successes, two Minnesota Republicans were appointed by Richard Nixon to the Supreme Court: Warren E. Burger and Harry A. Black-mun. There were occasional efforts to change the name of the DFL back to the Democratic Party, but this did not happen, in part because it would have permitted the Farmer-Labor Party to be rebuilt.

In presidential politics, Minnesota was reliably Republican from statehood until the 1912 election, when it supported former President Theodore Roosevelt's third party candidacy. It first went Democratic in 1932, and was a bellwether (always going for the national winner) until 1968, when it became firmly Democratic. In 1972, Minnesota narrowly went Republican, although it was Democratic nominee George McGovern's second best state. In 1980 and 1988, it was one of a small number of states to go Democratic, and in 1984, when Minnesotan Walter Mondale was the Democratic nominee, it was the only state to support the Democratic ticket. Minnesota has been such a safe Democratic state in recent decades that the Republican Party barely tries to win it.

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