Joanne E. Benson (born January 4, 1943) is an American politician and educator who served as the 44th lieutenant governor of Minnesota from January 3, 1995, to January 4, 1999. A

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 ...

, she was elected as

Arne Carlson Arne Helge Carlson (born September 24, 1934) is an American politician who served as the 37th Governor of Minnesota. A Republican, Carlson's viewpoints are considered to be moderate. He first won election to the governors office in 1990. Carlso ...

's running mate. From 1991 to 1995, Benson served as a member of the

Minnesota Senate The Minnesota Senate is the upper house of the Legislature of the U.S. state of Minnesota. At 67 members, half as many as the Minnesota House of Representatives, it is the largest upper house of any U.S. state legislature. Floor sessions are hel ...

Early life and education

Benson was born in

Le Sueur, Minnesota Le Sueur is a city in Le Sueur County, Minnesota, Le Sueur County in the U.S. state of Minnesota, between Mankato, Minnesota, Mankato and the Minneapolis-St. Paul, Twin Cities. It lies along the Minnesota River and U.S. Highway 169. Le Sueur was ...

. She earned a Bachelor of Science degree in elementary education from St. Cloud State University.

Career

Benson was a member of the Minnesota Senate from 1991 to 1995. She became lieutenant governor when she and Arne Carlson won the 1994 Minnesota gubernatorial election in a landslide. Benson later ran in the

1998 Minnesota gubernatorial election The 1998 Minnesota gubernatorial election took place on November 3, 1998. Reform Party candidate Jesse Ventura defeated Republican Party challenger Norm Coleman and Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party challenger Hubert H. "Skip" Humphr ...

in the Republican primary for governor, starting off as the front-runner. Despite her attempt to amass enough support within the GOP establishment to ward off any primary challengers, a late entrant to the race,

St. Paul Paul; grc, Παῦλος, translit=Paulos; cop, ⲡⲁⲩⲗⲟⲥ; hbo, פאולוס השליח (previously called Saul of Tarsus;; ar, بولس الطرسوسي; grc, Σαῦλος Ταρσεύς, Saũlos Tarseús; tr, Tarsuslu Pavlus; ...

Mayor

Norm Coleman Norman Bertram Coleman Jr. (born August 17, 1949) is an American politician, attorney, and lobbyist. From 2003 to 2009, he served as a United States Senator for Minnesota. From 1994 to 2002, he was mayor of Saint Paul, Minnesota. First elected ...

, garnered enough delegates to win the Republican endorsement at the state convention. Placing third in the race for delegates behind Coleman and

Allen Quist Allen J. Quist (born October 14, 1944) is a Minnesota politician, a former state representative, and a two-time candidate for governor of the state. State representative A Republican, Quist was first elected to the Minnesota House of Represent ...

, Benson agreed not to challenge Coleman in the primary. He won the nomination but lost the general election to the Reform Party nominee,

Jesse Ventura Jesse Ventura (born James George Janos; July 15, 1951) is an American politician, actor, and retired professional wrestler. After achieving fame in the World Wrestling Federation (WWF), he served as the 38th governor of Minnesota from 1999 to 2 ...

. Upon leaving office in 1999, Benson became the first chief education officer of the Minnesota Business Academy. In that capacity, she worked with civic and state leaders to raise money for the school. Benson was a member of the Governor’s State Capitol 2005 Commission, a group of prominent Minnesota citizens who were tasked with advising then-Governor

Tim Pawlenty Timothy James Pawlenty (; born November 27, 1960) is an American attorney, businessman, and politician who served as the 39th governor of Minnesota from 2003 to 2011. A member of the Republican Party, Pawlenty served in the Minnesota House o ...

on the 2005 centennial celebration of the

Minnesota State Capitol The Minnesota State Capitol is the seat of government for the U.S. state of Minnesota, in its capital city of Saint Paul. It houses the Minnesota Senate, Minnesota House of Representatives, the office of the Attorney General and the office o ...

Personal life

Benson is married to Robert R. Benson. She has two children and six grandchildren.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Benson, Joanne 1943 births Lieutenant Governors of Minnesota Living people People from Le Sueur, Minnesota Republican Party Minnesota state senators Women state legislators in Minnesota 21st-century American women St. Cloud State University alumni

Early life and education

Career

Personal life

See also

References