title: 69th Minnesota Legislature
text: # 69th Minnesota Legislature
  
  The sixty-ninth Minnesota Legislature first convened on January 7, 1975. The 67 members of the Minnesota Senate were elected during the General Election of November 7, 1972, while the 134 members of the Minnesota House of Representatives were elected during the General Election of November 5, 1974. The sixty-ninth Legislature was the first Minnesota Legislature to sit after the repeal of the requirement that Minnesota legislators be chosen in legally nonpartisan elections.
  
  ## Sessions
  
  The legislature met in a regular session from January 7, 1975 to May 19, 1975. A continuation of the regular session was held between January 27, 1976 and April 7, 1976. There were no special sessions of the 69th Legislature.
  
  ## Party summary
  
      Resignations and new members are discussed in the "Membership changes" section, below.
  
  ### Senate
  
  | | Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) | Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) | Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) | Total | Vacant |
  | - | - | - | - | - | - |
  | | DFL | Ind. | R | Total | Vacant |
  | End of previous Legislature | 38 | 1 | 27 | 66 | 1 |
  | Begin | 38 | 1 | 27 | 66 | 1 |
  | February 10, 1975 | 38 | 1 | 28 | 67 | 0 |
  | December 29, 1976 | 37 | 1 | 28 | 66 | 1 |
  | Latest voting share | 56% | 2% | 42% | | |
  | Beginning of the next Legislature | 48 | 0 | 18 | 66 | 1 |
  
  ### House of Representatives
  
  | | Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) | Party (Shading indicates majority caucus) | Total | Vacant |
  | - | - | - | - | - |
  | | DFL | R | Total | Vacant |
  | End of previous Legislature | 78 | 56 | 134 | 0 |
  | Begin | 104 | 30 | 134 | 0 |
  | January 27, 1976 | 103 | 31 | 134 | 0 |
  | Latest voting share | 77% | 23% | | |
  | Beginning of the next Legislature | 104 | 30 | 134 | 0 |
  
  ## Leadership
  
  ### Senate
  
  **President of the Senate**
  
  
      Alec G. Olson (DFL-Spicer)
  
  **Senate Majority Leader**
  
  
      Nicholas D. Coleman (DFL-Saint Paul)
  
  **Senate Minority Leader**
  
  
      Robert O. Ashbach (R-Saint Paul)
  
  ### House of Representatives
  
  **Speaker of the House**
  
  
      Martin O. Sabo (DFL-Minneapolis)
  
  **House Majority Leader**
  
  
      Irvin N. Anderson (DFL-International Falls)
  
  **House Minority Leader**
  
  
      Henry J. Savelkoul (R-Albert Lea)
  
  ## Membership changes
  
  ### Senate
  
  | District | Vacated by | Reason for change | Successor | Date successor seated |
  | - | - | - | - | - |
  | 33 | None | Incumbent Conservative/Republican Harold G. Krieger was elected to the office of district court judge of Olmsted County in the General Election of 1974, and was hence forced to resign from the Senate. The exact date of Krieger's resignation is unknown, but was prior to the convention of the 69th Legislature, and hence this seat was already vacant when the 69th Legislature convened. | Nancy Brataas (IR) | February 10, 1975 |
  | 21 | Alec G. Olson (DFL) | Incumbent DFLer and then-Senate President Alec G. Olson had been reelected during the General Election of 1976. However, during the same election cycle, U.S. Senator Walter Mondale was elected Vice President of the United States, causing Mondale to resign from the U.S. Senate. Governor Wendell Anderson proceeded to appoint himself to Mondale's vacated seat, which caused Lieutenant Governor Rudy Perpich to succeed to the office of Governor, and hence created a vacancy in the office of Lieutenant Governor. As per the provisions of the Minnesota Constitution, Olson, as the last-elected President of the Senate, then succeeded to the office of Lieutenant Governor, causing him to automatically resign his seat in the Minnesota Senate effective December 29, 1976. Thus, this seat was still vacant when the 70th Legislature convened. | Remained vacant | Remained vacant |
  