Charles A. Stenvig (January 16, 1928 – February 22, 2010) served as mayor of

Minneapolis Minneapolis () is the largest city in Minnesota, United States, and the county seat of Hennepin County. The city is abundant in water, with thirteen lakes, wetlands, the Mississippi River, creeks and waterfalls. Minneapolis has its origins ...

Minnesota Minnesota () is a state in the upper midwestern region of the United States. It is the 12th largest U.S. state in area and the 22nd most populous, with over 5.75 million residents. Minnesota is home to western prairies, now given over to ...

for two two-year terms from 1969 to 1973 and a third term from 1976 to 1978. He was a police officer with the

Minneapolis Police Department The Minneapolis Police Department (MPD) is the primary law enforcement agency in Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States. It is also the largest police department in Minnesota. Formed in 1867, it is the second-oldest police department in Minnesot ...

before and after serving as mayor. Stenvig was an

independent politician An independent or non-partisan politician is a politician not affiliated with any political party or bureaucratic association. There are numerous reasons why someone may stand for office as an independent. Some politicians have political views th ...

who espoused a "

law and order In modern politics, law and order is the approach focusing on harsher enforcement and penalties as ways to reduce crime. Penalties for perpetrators of disorder may include longer terms of imprisonment, mandatory sentencing, three-strikes laws a ...

" platform amid the social unrest of the late 1960s and early 1970s. He was compared to other law-and-order mayors such as

Sam Yorty Samuel William Yorty (October 1, 1909 – June 5, 1998) was an American radio host, attorney, and politician from Los Angeles, California. He served as a member of the United States House of Representatives and the California State Assembly, ...

Los Angeles Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

and

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Sinc ...

Frank Rizzo Francis Lazarro Rizzo (October 23, 1920 – July 16, 1991) was an American police officer and politician. He served as Philadelphia police commissioner from 1968 to 1971 and mayor of Philadelphia from 1972 to 1980. He was a member of the Democr ...

. As of 2021, he is the last elected mayor of the city who was not from the Democratic-Farmer-Labor party.

Biography

Stenvig was born in Minneapolis in 1928. Growing up in South Minneapolis, he attended Roosevelt High School, where he won a Minnesota state high school boys' golf championship. Stenvig graduated from

Augsburg College Augsburg University is a private university in Minneapolis, Minnesota. It is affiliated with the Evangelical Lutheran Church in America. It was founded in 1869 as a Norwegian-American Lutheran seminary known as Augsburg Seminarium. Today, the u ...

with a degree in

sociology Sociology is a social science that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. It uses various methods of Empirical ...

. He then joined the Minneapolis Police Department, working his way up to the rank of detective with the burglary squad, before entering Minneapolis politics. In 1969, Stenvig entered the mayoral election as an independent candidate. DFL Mayor

Arthur Naftalin Arthur Naftalin (June 28, 1917 – May 16, 2005) was an American political scientist and politician. A member of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party (DFL), he served as mayor of Minneapolis from July 3, 1961, to July 6, 1969. He was the ...

had declined to run for a fifth term and the race for the open seat attracted several candidates. Stenvig ran an unconventional campaign that relied on limited funds and volunteer labor. After winning a three-way primary election, forcing out DFL candidate Gerard Hegstrom, he went on to defeat the

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

candidate, 7th Ward alderman and Council President Dan Cohen, in the general election. Stenvig received 62% of the vote in the election, surprising many veteran political observers in the city. He was reelected in 1971, defeating DFL candidate W. Harry Davis by a wide margin. In the 1973 election, Stenvig lost to DFL candidate

Albert Hofstede Albert "Al" J. Hofstede (September 25, 1940 – September 3, 2016) was an American politician who served two non-consecutive terms as mayor of Minneapolis, Minnesota, both times representing the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party. Polit ...

. He won back the mayor's office in a 1975 rematch with Hofstede, then lost to Hofstede again in 1977. In 1978, he lost the Republican primary for Minnesota secretary of state. In 1979, Stenvig ran again for mayor and lost to Donald M. Fraser. In 1982, he ran for Hennepin County sheriff and lost. In 1981, Stenvig and members of his family appeared on an episode of the game show ''

Family Feud ''Family Feud'' is an American television game show created by Mark Goodson. It features two families who compete to name the most popular answers to survey questions in order to win cash and prizes. The show has had three separate runs, the ...

'', where they faced the Tuck family. The Stenvig family lost 422–0. After retiring from the police department, Stenvig moved to

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...

around 1990 and died there on February 22, 2010.

References

External links

*
List of Minneapolis mayors
{{DEFAULTSORT:Stenvig, Charles 1928 births 2010 deaths Mayors of Minneapolis Minnesota Independents Minneapolis Police Department officers American people of Norwegian descent Roosevelt High School (Minnesota) alumni Augsburg University alumni