MINNEAPOLIS MAYORAL SUPERLATIVES
Copyright (C) 1994-2005 Tony Hill Consulting
All Rights Reserved
OLDEST MAYORS
(age when left office)
1. Fraser 69 years, 314 days
2. Pillsbury 69 years, 228 days
3. Leach 64 years, 357 days
(age when assumed office, * indicates return to office)
1. Pillsbury 67 years, 223 days
2. Leach (*1937) 60 years, 356 days
3. Ames (A.A.) (*1901) 58 years, 354 days
4. Haynes (*1907) 58 years, 107 days
YOUNGEST MAYORS
1. Hofstede 33 years, 99 days
2. Humphrey 34 years, 37 days
3. Ames (A.A.) 34 years, 85 days
4. Brackett 36 years, 204 days
5. Gray 36 years, 318 days
(Edward S. Brown became mayor of the City of
St. Anthony at age 33 years, 65 days. Three
others became St. Anthony mayor before age 34.
Henry T. Welles, the first mayor of St.
Anthony took office at 34 years, 13 days.)
LONGEST TENURE
1. Fraser 14 years
2. Leach 12 years, 4 days
3. Hoyer 8 years, 219 days
4. Naftalin 8 years, 3 days
5. Sayles Belton 8 years
6. Haynes 7 years, 361 days
7. Stenvig 6 years, 178 days
LONGEST CONTINUOUS TENURE
1. Fraser 14 years
2. Hoyer 8 years, 219 days
3-4. Leach 8 years, 3 days
3-4. Naftalin 8 years, 3 days
5. Sayles Belton 8 years
6. Haynes 5 years, 364 days
SHORTEST TENURE
Erdall less than one day
(No other mayor served an unusually short tenure, although
Jones served 131 days in 1902-3 before being elected to a
two year term in 1904.)
LONGEST LIVED
1. Hoyer 92 years, 14 days
2. Kunze 89 years, 259 days
3. de Laittre 89 years, 199 days
4. Naftalin 87 years, 322 days
5. Brackett 84 years, 243 days
6. Eustis 83 years, 134 days
SHORTEST LIVED
1. Bainbridge 50 years, 192 days
2. Rand 52 years, 192 days
3. Gray 54 years, 203 days
(Mayor Rand drowned in a boat explosion on Lake Minnetonka
along with seven members of his family and two others. He
and Mayor Peterson, who died in a car accident, were the
only mayors to die from other than natural causes.)
LONGEST LIVED AFTER LEAVING OFFICE
1. Brackett 47 years, 33 days
2. de Laittre 45 years, 163 days
3. Naftalin 35 years, 314 days
4. Eustis 33 years, 327 days
5. Hoyer 32 years, 253 days
6. Peterson 32 years 183 days
7. Kunze 30 years, 224 days
8. Merriman 30 years, 113 days
9. Humphrey 29 years, 45 days
SHORTEST LIVED AFTER LEAVING OFFICE
1. Haynes 104 days
2. Latimer 124 days
3. Bainbridge 251 days
4. Rand 3 years, 92 days
(Mayor Latimer and Mayor Bainbridge both died shortly
after losing reelection bids. Mayor Haynes abruptly
ended his reelection effort before the election.)
NATIVE MINNEAPOLITANS
Jones, Peterson, Stenvig, Erdall, Hofstede, Fraser, Rybak
(The only other native Minnesotans were Kunze, born in Sleepy
Eye and Sayles Belton, born in St. Paul.)
NATURALIZED AMERICANS
Gray (born in Scotland); Hoyer (born in Sweden)
MAYORS WHO MOVED INTO THE LEAMINGTON HOTEL FROM EDINA ON THE NIGHT
THE REPUBLICAN PARTY NOMINATED THEM
Leach
MAYORS WHO HELD OTHER ELECTIVE OFFICES
Comptroller: Nye
City Council: *Jones, Haynes, Nye, *Kline, *Hoyer, *Erdall,
Hofstede, *Sayles Belton (* Council President)
Legislature: Morrison, Peterson, Fraser
U.S. House: Morrison, Fraser
U.S. Senate: Humphrey (Majority Whip, Deputy President Pro
Tempore)
Vice President
of the U.S.: Humphrey
LARGEST ELECTION WINS (* incumbent)
1. Fraser* 1985 82%
2. Hoyer* 1951 81%
3. Fraser* 1989 79%
4. Stenvig* 1971 72%
5. Ames (Eli B.)* 1871 66%
6. Humphrey* 1947 66%
7. Stenvig 1969 65%
8. Rybak 2001 65%
(Mayor Humphrey in 1947 and Mayor Hoyer in 1951 were the
only mayors to top 100,000 popular votes.)
NARROWEST ELECTION WINS (* incumbent)
1. Haynes* 1910 34 votes (4-way)
2. Haynes* 1908 < 1% point (4-way)
3. Stenvig 1975 < 1% point (5-way)
4. Meyers 1918 51%
5. Naftalin* 1967 51%
6. Van Lear 1916 51%
DFL MAYORS FROM THE EAST SIDE
Humphrey, Hoyer, Naftalin, Hofstede, Fraser
DFL MAYORS FROM THE WEST SIDE
Mayor Sayles Belton was the first DFLer elected from the
West Side. Mayor Rybak was second.
INCUMBENTS DEFEATED
Gray 1900
Haynes 1904 (subsequently reelected)
Jones 1906
Van Lear 1918 (lost comeback attempt)
Leach 1929 (lost comeback attempt; eventually reelected)
Kunze 1931 primary
Anderson 1933
Bainbridge 1935 primary (19 way race)
Latimer 1937 primary ( 5 way race)
Leach 1941 primary
Kline 1945
Hoyer 1957
Peterson 1961 (lost comeback attempt)
Stenvig 1973 (subsequently reelected)
Hofstede 1975 (subsequently reelected)
Stenvig 1977 (lost comeback attempt)
Sayles Belton 2001
MAYORS WHO RESIGNED
Ames (A.A.), August 27, 1902 (scandal)
Humphrey, November 30, 1948 (elected to U.S. Senate)
Stenvig, December 31, 1973 (lark)
MAYORS WHO DIED IN OFFICE
In the 136 years that the City has existed, no mayor
has met with this fate.
Tony Hill Consulting
P.O. Box 14995
Minneapolis, Minnesota 55414
(612) 788-8164
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