Theodore J. "Ted" Winter (born November 26, 1949) 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 and a former 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 ...
from southwestern Minnesota. First elected in 1986 in the
Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party's "firestorm" that swept through the region, giving
Democrats unprecedented control of southwestern Minnesota for the next several election cycles, Winter served eight terms. He was re-elected in 1988, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1996, 1998 and 2000. He represented the old District 28A and, later, District 22A, which included all or portions of
Cottonwood,
Jackson
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* Jackson (name), including a list of people and fictional characters with the surname or given name
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Australia
* Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region
* Jackson North, Qu ...
,
Lyon
Lyon,, ; Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the third-largest city and second-largest metropolitan area of France. It is located at the confluence of the rivers Rhône and Saône, to the northwest of t ...
,
Murray
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* Murrays, an Australian bus company
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,
Nobles
Nobility is a social class found in many societies that have an aristocracy. It is normally ranked immediately below royalty. Nobility has often been an estate of the realm with many exclusive functions and characteristics. The characteristi ...
and
Redwood
Sequoioideae, popularly known as redwoods, is a subfamily of coniferous trees within the family
Family (from la, familia) is a Social group, group of people related either by consanguinity (by recognized birth) or Affinity (law), affini ...
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 1992.
Background and education
From the small farm town of
Fulda
Fulda () (historically in English called Fuld) is a town in Hesse, Germany; it is located on the river Fulda and is the administrative seat of the Fulda district (''Kreis''). In 1990, the town hosted the 30th Hessentag state festival.
History ...
, Winter graduated from Fulda High School in 1967, then went on to
Worthington Community College
Minnesota West Community and Technical College is a public community and technical college in Minnesota with five campuses: Canby, Granite Falls, Jackson, Pipestone, and Worthington. The college also has learning centers in Luverne, Marshall, ...
in
Worthington
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* Worthington (surname)
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* Worthington Brewery, also known as Worthington's
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, graduating in 1970. He and his family maintain a farm in Nobles County just outside Fulda.
Advocate for farmers and legislative leadership
A farmer himself, Winter earned a reputation as a strong advocate for farmers and agricultural issues during his time in office. He had also been an advocate of the somewhat militant
Groundswell movement in the mid-1980s in its quest to bring political and social change on behalf of the region's farmers.
While in the legislature, Winter was a member of the House Agriculture, Economic Development, Environment and Natural Resources, Financial Institutions and Insurance, Governmental Operations, Insurance, Local and Urban Affairs, Rules and Legislative Administration, Taxes, Transportation and Transit, and Ways and Means committees, and of various sub-committees relevant to each area. He served as
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. during the 1997–1999 biennium under
House Speaker Phil Carruthers
Phil Carruthers (born December 8, 1953) is an American judge and former Minnesota politician and former member and Speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives. He is also the former director of the Civil Division at the Ramsey County Atto ...
.
Service to the Minnesota Farmer's Union
In 1998, Winter appeared before the
United States House Committee on Agriculture
The U.S. House Committee on Agriculture, or Agriculture Committee is a standing committee of the United States House of Representatives. The House Committee on Agriculture has general jurisdiction over federal agriculture policy and oversight of s ...
to testify on behalf of the
National Farmer's Union regarding the state of the agricultural economy. He ran for president of the Minnesota branch of the organization in 2002, losing to former Minnesota state representative Doug Peterson.
After his service in the legislature concluded, Winter took a position in
Windom as an
agent
Agent may refer to:
Espionage, investigation, and law
*, spies or intelligence officers
* Law of agency, laws involving a person authorized to act on behalf of another
** Agent of record, a person with a contractual agreement with an insuranc ...
with the Minnesota Farmer's Union, which is a non-profit membership-based organization that works to protect and enhance the economic interests and quality of life of family farmers and ranchers and rural communities.
2010 House campaign
On June 1, 2010, Winter filed for the open House seat in District 22A, seeking to regain the position he lost to outgoing Rep.
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 ...
in 2002. In announcing his candidacy, Winter stated he believed his "leadership abilities and past experience can make a real difference next year as we face another deep budget deficit," adding that he was "especially concerned that rural Minnesota be treated equitably" and "should not be expected to bear more than our fair share of budget cuts." He was unsuccessful in his comeback bid, losing the November 2, 2010, general election to
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 ...
newcomer
Joe Schomacker
Joseph "Joe" Roy Schomacker (born March 25, 1986) is an American politician and member of the Minnesota House of Representatives. A member of the Republican Party of Minnesota, he represents District 22A, which includes all or portions of Cottonw ...
of
Luverne.
[http://www.dglobe.com/event/article/id/42582/publisher_ID/24/]
References
External links
Testimony of Ted Winter before the U.S. House Agriculture Committee 7/30/1998*
ttp://politicsinminnesota.com/blog/2010/06/former-house-leader-winter-seeks-to-regain-seat/ Former House leader Winter seeks to regain seat – Politics in Minnesota 6/1/2010
{{DEFAULTSORT:Winter, Ted
1949 births
Living people
People from Nobles County, Minnesota
Democratic Party members of the Minnesota House of Representatives
21st-century American politicians
People from Fulda, Minnesota