Steven A. "Steve" Sviggum is a
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 ...
politician, a member of the
University of Minnesota
The University of Minnesota, formally the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities, (UMN Twin Cities, the U of M, or Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Tw ...
Board of Regents
In the United States, a board often governs institutions of higher education, including private universities, state universities, and community colleges. In each US state, such boards may govern either the state university system, individual col ...
, and an executive assistant to and communications director for 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 ...
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 ...
in 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 ...
. A former
Speaker
Speaker may refer to:
Society and politics
* Speaker (politics), the presiding officer in a legislative assembly
* Public speaker, one who gives a speech or lecture
* A person producing speech: the producer of a given utterance, especially:
** I ...
and member of the
Minnesota House of Representatives
The Minnesota House of Representatives is the lower house of the Legislature of the U.S. state of Minnesota. There are 134 members, twice as many as the Minnesota Senate. Floor sessions are held in the north wing of the State Capitol in Saint Pa ...
, Sviggum represented District 28B in the southeastern part of the state. The area was known as District 25A until the 1982 legislative
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 ...
, and then as District 26A until the 1992 redistricting, and has included all or portions of
Dakota
Dakota may refer to:
* Dakota people, a sub-tribe of the Sioux
** Dakota language, their language
Dakota may also refer to:
Places United States
* Dakota, Georgia, an unincorporated community
* Dakota, Illinois, a town
* Dakota, Minnesota, a ...
,
Dodge
Dodge is an American brand of automobiles and a division of Stellantis, based in Auburn Hills, Michigan. Dodge vehicles have historically included performance cars, and for much of its existence Dodge was Chrysler's mid-priced brand above P ...
,
Goodhue,
Olmsted Olmsted may refer to:
People
* Olmsted (name)
Places
* Olmsted Air Force Base, inactive since 1969
* Olmsted, Illinois
* Olmsted County, Minnesota
* Olmsted Falls, Ohio
* Olmsted Point, a viewing area in Yosemite National Park
* Olmsted Town ...
,
Steele
Steele may refer to:
Places America
* Steele, Alabama, a town
* Steele, Arkansas, an unincorporated community
* Steele, Kentucky, an unincorporated community
* Steele, Missouri, a city
* Lonetree, Montana, a ghost town originally called Steele ...
,
Wabasha,
Waseca and
Winona counties.
Background
Of
Norwegian-American
Norwegian Americans ( nb, Norskamerikanere, nn, Norskamerikanarar) are Americans with ancestral roots in Norway. Norwegian immigrants went to the United States primarily in the latter half of the 19th century and the first few decades of the ...
ancestry, Sviggum was born in September 1951. He received a B.A. in mathematics from
St. Olaf College in
Northfield Northfield may refer to:
Places United Kingdom
* Northfield, Aberdeen, Scotland
* Northfield, Edinburgh, Scotland
* Northfield, Birmingham, England
* Northfield (Kettering BC Ward), Northamptonshire, England
United States
* Northfield, Connec ...
, and later worked as both a teacher and a farmer.
Service and leadership in the Minnesota House
Sviggum was first elected to the House in 1978. He served as
minority leader from April 17, 1992 to 1999, and became Speaker after the 1998 elections, when the Republicans took control of the House. He began his speakership under unusual circumstances, as 1998 also saw the election of
Reform Party candidate
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 ...
as
governor
A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...
while the Democrats retained control 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 ...
. Sviggum was the leader of the Republicans in a government divided among three political parties.
In 2003 Sviggum alleged that then-State Representative
Rebecca Otto
Rebecca Otto (born July 9, 1963) is an American politician who served as State Auditor of Minnesota from 2007 to 2019. Affiliated with the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party (DFL), she served in the Minnesota House of Representatives from 20 ...
had knowingly distributed false campaign materials. Otto was indicted, but the presiding judge dismissed the charges.
In the 2006 election, the Democrats regained control of the House, ending Sviggum's tenure as Speaker. Though he won reelection to his House seat, he chose not seek a leadership position in the next session. Democrat
Margaret Anderson Kelliher
Margaret Anderson Kelliher (born March 11, 1968) is an American politician, Director of the Minneapolis Department of Public Works, former Commissioner of the Minnesota Department of Transportation, and a former member of the Minnesota House of R ...
succeeded him as Speaker.
State commissioner
On June 26, 2007, 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 ...
announced that Sviggum would succeed Scott Brenner as
Minnesota Commissioner of Labor and Industry. He resigned from his House seat and took over the position on July 17, 2007, serving until December 2010. A
special election
A by-election, also known as a special election in the United States and the Philippines, a bye-election in Ireland, a bypoll in India
India, officially the Republic of India (Hindi: ), is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-larges ...
held on August 7, 2007, to determine Sviggum's successor was won by Republican
Steve Drazkowski
Steve Drazkowski (born November 27, 1964) is an American politician serving as a member of the Minnesota Senate from District 20, representing all of Wabasha County, large parts of Olmsted County, Goodhue County, and Winona County, and a small ...
of
Wabasha.
On December 2, 2010, in the waning days of the Pawlenty administration, Sviggum was appointed Commissioner of the Minnesota Management and Budget Office, the department responsible for preparing budget proposals for the governor. He served just over a month, leaving office with Pawlenty on January 3, 2011.
University of Minnesota regent
Sviggum and former Representative
Laura Brod
Laura Brod (née Morris; born December 11, 1971) is an entrepreneur and former politician having been an elected at-large member of the University of Minnesota Board of regents, Board of Regents, and a former member of the Minnesota House of Re ...
were elected to the University of Minnesota's Board of Regents on February 21, 2011, by a joint meeting of the Minnesota House and
Senate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
. He is serving a six-year term on the 12-member body, which is charged with overseeing the University of Minnesota system.
In 2022, Sviggum suggested that the
University of Minnesota Morris
The University of Minnesota Morris (UMN Morris) is a public liberal arts college in Morris, Minnesota. It is part of the University of Minnesota system and was founded in 1960 as a public, co-educational, residential liberal arts college offering ...
might be "too diverse". He said that two of his friends' children had not gone to Morris because they "just didn't feel comfortable there".
Morris has a little over 1,000 students, of whom 54% are white and 41% are Black, Indigenous, and people of color. When asked for a response to criticism of his remarks, he replied, "I was just asking a question. I'm sorry some feel the question might be offensive."
Work with Minnesota senate
On January 16, 2012, Sviggum was named communications director and executive assistant for the Republican caucus in 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 ...
. Sviggum replaced
Michael Brodkorb, who had resigned in the wake of a scandal involving former Senate
Majority Leader
In U.S. politics (as well as in some other countries utilizing the presidential system), the majority floor leader is a partisan position in a legislative body. Amy Koch
Amy T. Koch (born October 8, 1971) is an American politician and a former majority leader of the Minnesota Senate, where she represented portions of Hennepin and Wright counties. Koch, the first female Senate majority leader in state history, i ...
. Sviggum was criticized for his intention to remain a regent during his tenure with the Senate. Senate
Minority Leader Tom Bakk
Thomas M. Bakk ( ; born June 8, 1954) is a Minnesota politician and member of the Minnesota Senate. Currently independent and a former member of the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party, Bakk represents District 3, which includes portions ...
said he believed holding both positions was a conflict of interest.
Sviggum admitted that taxpayers should not have paid for pamphlets created by the Minnesota Senate Republican communications department and used by 15 Republican Senators for Republican attendees of precinct caucuses. He publicly apologized for using taxpayer's resources to produce campaign materials.
On June 11, 2012, th
Minnesota Office of Administrative Hearingsruled
that sufficient evidence existed for a complaint the Minnesota DFL
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 i ...
Party filed against Sviggum and 14 Republican Senators regarding the pamphlets to continue. The complaint against Senator Doug Magnus
Douglas Rudy Magnus (born November 1950) is an American, Minnesota politician and a former member of the Minnesota Senate, who represented District 22, which includes all of Cottonwood, Jackson, Murray, Nobles, Pipestone and Rock counties in ...
was dismissed.
References
External links
University of Minnesota Humphrey School of Public Affairs ProfileMinnesota House of Representatives Website for Steve Sviggum*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sviggum, Steve
1951 births
Living people
People from Kenyon, Minnesota
St. Olaf College alumni
Speakers of the Minnesota House of Representatives
Republican Party members of the Minnesota House of Representatives
American people of Norwegian descent
American Lutherans
21st-century American politicians