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Listen to the March of the Governors

Learn about some of the most influential Farmer-Labor Governors of Minnesota on Ramsey County Historical Societies’ March of the Governors Podcast.

The years 1930 to 1938 are known to history as the decade of the Great Depression. They are also the years when the governorship in Minnesota was held by the Farmer-Labor Party. The first, Floyd B. Olson, served three terms (1930 into 1936) and was the most popular and influential of the three. He was about to launch his campaign for U.S. Senate when he died of stomach cancer. The second, Hjalmar Petersen, served as Lt. Governor under Olson and briefly as governor upon Olson’s death. Elmer Benson was the third and last governor (1936-38). Arguably the most progressive of the three, Benson lacked the political skills of the charismatic Olson and was defeated in 1938 by reform-minded Republican Harold Stassen. Benson would go on to lead the Farmer-Labor Party into a merger with the Democrats in 1944 to form the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party. Each Farmer-Labor governor has been featured on the podcast. Check out the links below to hear them on Ramsey County Historical Societies’ March of the Governors Podcast.

Sam West