Theodore Christianson (September 12, 1883December 9, 1948) was an

American politician The politics of the United States function within a framework of a constitutional federal republic and presidential system, with three distinct branches that share powers. These are: the U.S. Congress which forms the legislative branch, a bic ...

who served as the 21st Governor of Minnesota from January 6, 1925, until January 6, 1931.

Early life and education

Christianson was born in

Lac qui Parle Township, Minnesota Lac qui Parle Township ( ) is a township in Lac qui Parle County, Minnesota, Lac qui Parle County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 183 at the 2000 census. Lac qui Parle Township was organized in 1873, and named for the county in whic ...

. He was of

Norwegian Norwegian, Norwayan, or Norsk may refer to: *Something of, from, or related to Norway, a country in northwestern Europe * Norwegians, both a nation and an ethnic group native to Norway * Demographics of Norway *The Norwegian language, including ...

descent. He attended Dawson High School. Christianson graduated from 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 ...

in 1906 and the

University of Minnesota Law School The University of Minnesota Law School is the law school of the University of Minnesota, located in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The school confers four law degrees: a Juris Doctor (J.D.), a Master of Laws (LL.M.), a Master of Science in Patent Law ...

in 1909. He was admitted to the Minnesota State Bar in 1909.

Career

Before entering politics, Christianson had pursued dual careers in western Minnesota, where he both practiced law and was editor and publisher of the ''Dawson Sentinel'' for fifteen years. He served as a 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 ...

for five terms. "More Ted, Less Taxes" was the Christians's campaign slogan when he ran for governor in 1924. During his administration, he limited taxes and cut expenditures at every level of state government. He was re-elected twice. During his tenure as governor, Christianson established a three-member Commission of Administration and Finance. This so-called "Big Three" unleashed the veto power of the chief executive, who slashed budget appropriations he considered extravagant. Christianson was a candidate for the 1930 United States Senate election in Minnesota, placing second in the Republican primary after incumbent Senator Thomas Schall. During a three-year hiatus from politics, Christianson wrote five-volume history text called ''The Land of Sky-Tinted Waters: A History of the State and its People''. He was elected to the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the Lower house, lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the United States Senate, Senate being ...

in 1932 and served until 1937. In 1936, he did not run for re-election to the House, opting to launch another bid for the Senate in the 1936 election. Receiving the Republican nomination, he ran against former congressman

Ernest Lundeen Ernest Lundeen (August 4, 1878August 31, 1940) was an American lawyer and politician. Family and education Lundeen was born and raised on his father's homestead in Brooklyn Township of Lincoln County near Beresford in the Dakota Territory. H ...

of the

Farmer Labor Party A farmer is a person engaged in agriculture, raising living organisms for food or raw materials. The term usually applies to people who do some combination of raising field crops, orchards, vineyards, poultry, or other livestock. A farmer mi ...

and was defeated, receiving 37% of the vote. After leaving politics, Christianson moved to

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

and served as secretary-manager of the National Association of Retail Grocers from 1937 to 1939. He was public relations counsel for the National Association of Retail Druggists from 1938 to 1945, and editor of ''The Journal of the National Association of Retail Druggists: Official Organ of the N.A.R.D.'' from 1945 to 1948.

Personal life

His son was Theodore Christianson who served on the

Minnesota Supreme Court The Minnesota Supreme Court is the Supreme court, highest court in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The court hears cases in the Supreme Court chamber in the Minnesota State Capitol or in the nearby Minnesota Judicial Center. History The court wa ...

.'Theodore Christianson, 42, Court Justice, Dies Suddenly,' ''Albert Lea Evening Time,'' September 19, 1955, pg. 1 Christianson had recently retired to

Dawson, Minnesota Dawson is a city in Lac qui Parle County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 1,466 at the 2020 census. History Dawson was platted in 1884. The city was named for William Dawson, a former mayor of St. Paul, and one of three partners ...

, when he died of a heart attack at 65. He is interred at Sunset Memorial Park Cemetery in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

References

Other sources

Biographical information Gubernatorial recordsMinnesota Historical SocietyMinnesota Legislators Past and Present
{{DEFAULTSORT:Christianson, Theodore 1883 births 1948 deaths People from Lac qui Parle County, Minnesota Republican Party governors of Minnesota 20th-century American newspaper publishers (people) American Presbyterians Historians of Minnesota Republican Party members of the Minnesota House of Representatives University of Minnesota Law School alumni American people of Norwegian descent Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Minnesota 20th-century American politicians Historians from Minnesota