Earl W. Renneke (March 10, 1928 – March 3, 2021) was a former
Minnesota politician and a former member of the
Minnesota Senate from southern Minnesota.
Life and career
He was first elected in a March 25, 1969, special election to fill the vacancy that arose due to the unexpected death of Senator
Harold Popp
Harold R. Popp (June 17, 1903 – February 22, 1969) was an American pharmacist, businessman, and politician.
Popp was born in Hutchinson, Minnesota. He graduated from Hutchinson. He received his bachelor's degree in pharmacy from Universi ...
in a traffic accident on February 21, 1969. He was re-elected in 1970, 1972, 1976, 1980, 1982, 1986 and 1990. He represented the old districts 15 and 23 and, later, District 35, which included all or portions of
Blue Earth,
Carver,
LeSueur,
McLeod,
Nicollet,
Scott
Scott may refer to:
Places Canada
* Scott, Quebec, municipality in the Nouvelle-Beauce regional municipality in Quebec
* Scott, Saskatchewan, a town in the Rural Municipality of Tramping Lake No. 380
* Rural Municipality of Scott No. 98, Saska ...
and
Sibley counties, changing somewhat through
redistricting
Redistribution (re-districting in the United States and in the Philippines) is the process by which electoral districts are added, removed, or otherwise changed. Redistribution is a form of boundary delimitation that changes electoral dist ...
in 1970 and 1980.
From the town of
Le Sueur, Renneke, a farmer, earned a reputation as a strong advocate for agriculture and preservation of natural resources. His special legislative concerns included these issues, as well as corrections and education. He was a member of the Senate Agriculture & Natural Resources, Commerce, Corrections & Commitments, Elections & Reapportionment, Finance, Governmental Operations, Health & Welfare, Labor Relations, Local & Urban Government, Public Employees & Pensions, Rules & Administration, and Veterans & General Legislation committees, and of various other committee incarnations and subcommittees during his 24 years in office. He originally allied with the Conservative
Caucus
A caucus is a meeting of supporters or members of a specific political party or movement. The exact definition varies between different countries and political cultures.
The term originated in the United States, where it can refer to a meeting ...
at a time when the legislature was still officially
nonpartisan
Nonpartisanism is a lack of affiliation with, and a lack of bias towards, a political party.
While an Oxford English Dictionary definition of ''partisan'' includes adherents of a party, cause, person, etc., in most cases, nonpartisan refers sp ...
, and later identified as a
Republican when party affiliation became required of candidates.
Renneke did not seek re-election in 1992. After leaving the legislature, he spearheaded an effort on behalf of the Sibley County Historical Society to obtain funding from the state for restoration of the 1879 county courthouse and development of the
Joseph R. Brown Interpretive Center. Brown was an early state pioneer, entrepreneur and politician, and the founder of the town of
Henderson.
In 1999,
Governor Jesse Ventura appointed Renneke to serve on the Minnesota Compensation Council, which determines the salaries of the state’s elected and appointed officials. In 2005, he was appointed by the Legislative Commission on Minnesota Resources to serve on the Environment & Natural Resources Trust Fund Advisory Task Force. He served as chairman of the campaign committee for
Senator Dennis Frederickson of
New Ulm.
References
External links
{{DEFAULTSORT:Renneke, Earl
1928 births
2021 deaths
Republican Party Minnesota state senators
People from Sibley County, Minnesota
People from Le Sueur, Minnesota
American Lutherans
University of Minnesota alumni
People from St. Peter, Minnesota
Farmers from Minnesota