This is a list of minority leaders 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 h ...

{, class=wikitable , - bgcolor="#cccccc" ! Name !! Took office !! Left office !! Party/Caucus , - , Bolesaw G. Novak, , 1951, , 1955, ,

Liberal Liberal or liberalism may refer to: Politics * a supporter of liberalism ** Liberalism by country * an adherent of a Liberal Party * Liberalism (international relations) * Sexually liberal feminism * Social liberalism Arts, entertainment and m ...

, - , Harold W. Schultz, , 1955, , 1963, , Liberal , - , Paul A. Thuet, , 1963, , 1967, , Liberal , - , Karl F. Grittner, , 1967, , 1971, , Liberal , - , Nick Coleman, , 1971, , 1973, , Liberal , - , Harold G. Krieger, , 1973, , 1975, ,

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 ...

, - , Robert O. Ashbach, , 1975, , 1983, , Republican/ Independent-Republican , - , James E. Ulland, , 1983, , 1985, , Independent-Republican , - ,

Glen Taylor Glen Allen Taylor (born April 20, 1941) is an American billionaire business magnate and politician from Minnesota. A self-made businessman, Taylor made his fortune from being the founder and owner of Minnesota-based Taylor Corporation, one of th ...

, , 1985, , 1987, , Independent-Republican , - , Duane Benson, , 1987, , 1993, , Independent-Republican , - , Dean Johnson, , 1993, , 1995, , Independent-Republican/Republican , - ,

Dick Day Richard Day (born March 9, 1937) in American politician and a former member of the Minnesota Senate who represented District 26, which includes portions of Dodge, Freeborn, Goodhue, Mower, Olmsted, Rice, Steele and Waseca counties in the sout ...

, , 1995, , 2007, , Republican , - , David Senjem, , 2007, , 2011, , Republican , - ,

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 ...

, , 2011, , 2013, , Democratic-Farmer-Labor , - ,

David Hann David W. Hann (born April 16, 1952) is a Minnesota politician and a former minority leader of the Minnesota Senate. A Republican, he represented District 48, which consisted of the cities of Eden Prairie and Minnetonka, from 2003-2017. He is cu ...

, , 2013, , 2017, , Republican , - ,

, , 2017, , 2020, , Democratic-Farmer-Labor , - , Susan Kent, , 2020, , 2021, , Democratic-Farmer-Labor , - , Melisa Franzen, , 2021, , 2023, , Democratic-Farmer-Labor , -{{Party shading/Republican , Mark Johnson, , 2023, , designate, , Republican

Notes on Minnesota political party names

Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party 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 ...

: On April 15, 1944 the state Democratic Party and the

Minnesota Farmer-Labor Party 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 ...

merged and created the

(DFL). It is affiliated with the national Democratic Party. *

Republican Party of Minnesota The Republican Party of Minnesota is the oldest active political party in the U.S. state of Minnesota. The Minnesota Republican Party’s platform is relatively moderate. The party’s main issues are economic growth, education, healthcare, civi ...

: From November 15, 1975 to September 23, 1995 the name of the state Republican party was the Independent-Republican party (I-R). The party has always been affiliated with the national Republican Party. In 1913, Minnesota legislators began to be elected on nonpartisan ballots. Nonpartisanship also was an historical accident that occurred in the 1913 session when a bill to provide for no party elections of judges and city and county officers was amended to include the Legislature in the belief that it would kill the bill. Legislators ran and caucused as "Liberals" or "Conservatives" roughly equivalent in most years to Democratic-Farmer-Labor and Republican, respectively. The law was changed in 1973, in 1976, Senate members again ran with party designation.

References

Minnesota Legislative Reference Library
Minnesota Legislature M