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Minnesota Administration

As in the national government of the Unitedlevel go to the U.S. Supreme Court in
States, power in Minnesota is divided intoWashington,  D.C..
three main branches: Executive, Legislative,
and  Judicial.In addition to the standard city and county
levels of government found in the United
The executive branch is headed by theStates, Minnesota also has other entities
governor, currently Tim Pawlenty, athat provide governmental oversight and
Republican, whose term began 6 January 2003.planning. Some actions in the Twin Cities
The current lieutenant governor of Minnesotametropolitan area are coordinated by the
is Carol Molnau. Molnau also currently servesMetropolitan Council, and many lakes and
as the head of the Minnesota Department ofrivers are overseen by watershed districts
Transportation.and  soil  and  water conservation districts.
Both the governor and lieutenant governorPolitics Minnesota is known for active yet
have four-year terms. The governor has aquirky politics, with populism being a
cabinet consisting of the leaders of variouslongstanding force among all of the political
government agencies in the state, calledparties that call the state home. Minnesota
commissioners. The full list of governors,politics include such oddities as a
and the dates they took office, is availableprofessional wrestler turned governor and a
at List of Governors of Minnesota. The otherprotester turned crowd-surfing mayor not to
constitutional offices are secretary ofmention one of the all-time most liberal
state,  attorney  general  and state auditor.senators, Paul Wellstone. 77.3% of eligible
Minnesotans voted in the 2004 U.S.
The Minnesota Legislature is a bicameral bodypresidential election, the highest of any
consisting of the Senate and the House ofU.S.  state.
Representatives. The state has 67 districts,
each covering about 60,000 people. EachPolitical conservatism is less strongly
district has one senator and twolinked to church attendance in most of
representatives (each district being dividedMinnesota than in other parts of the country,
into  A  and  B  subsections).perhaps a reflection of the strong mainline
Protestant and Roman Catholic following,
Senators serve for four years, andthough in the elections of 2000, 2002, and
representatives serve for two years. In the2004 it was shown that this trend was in the
November 2004 election, the Republican Partyprocess of changing in some Twin Cities
retained control of the Minnesota House ofvoting  precincts.
Representatives by a single seat (68-66),
having lost a total of 13 seats. TheAs a result of its liberal and populist
Minnesota Senate is controlled by thepolitical culture throughout much of the
Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Partylatter half of the 20th century, Minnesota
(DFL).has voted for Democrats for president longer
than any other state (the District of
After picking up two seats in local specialColumbia has voted for a Democrat in every
elections on 16 November 2005, and 27election since 1964), since 1976. Minnesota
December, 2005, the DFL controls the senateand the District of Columbia were the only
(38-29). There was one Independence Partyelectoral votes not won by incumbent
state senator, former Republican SheilaRepublican president Ronald Reagan, voting
Kiscaden (IP-Rochester) who caucused with theinstead for former Vice President of the
DFL. She officially joined the party inUnited States and former U.S. Senator Walter
January 2006, bringing their lead to eightMondale, a Minnesota native. It should be
seats.noted that a Minnesotan ran on the Democratic
ticket as either President or Vice President
Minnesota's court system has three levels:in the 1964, 1968, 1976, 1980 and 1984. In
Trial courts. The state is split into 102004, John Kerry narrowly won the state's 10
judicial  districts,  with  257  judges.electoral votes by a margin of three
percentage points with 51.1% of the vote.
Most  state  cases start in the trial courts.Republican strength is greatest in southern
Minnesota and the suburbs of Minneapolis,
Minnesota Court of Appeals. This body hearsespecially in the area west of the city, and
appeals on cases tried in the trial courts.in developing outer suburban communities.
There are 16 judges, who divide intoDemocrats hold tremendous strength in
three-judge panels to hear appeals in courtsMinneapolis/ St. Paul proper and in the Iron
across  the  state.Range of northeastern Minnesota, including
Duluth.
Minnesota Supreme Court. The seven justices
on the Supreme Court hear appeals from theThe state also enjoys a strong and active
Court of Appeals, the Tax Court, and thethird party movement. The Reform Party was
Worker's Compensation Court. The courtable to elect former mayor of Brooklyn Park,
automatically reviews first-degree murderand former wrestling superstar Jesse Ventura
convictions, and settles disputes overto the governorship in 1998; however Ventura
legislative  elections.left the Reform Party in 2000 when Pat
Buchanan took control. Ventura maintained
The state has two special courts created byclose ties to the Independence Party, but
state law as executive-branch agencies: Thechose not to seek reelection. In 2002 the
Tax Court deals with non-criminal tax casesIndependence Party ran former democratic
across the state. It has three judgescongressman Tim Penny in an unsuccessful bid
appointed by the governor to six-year terms,for  the  governorship.
following approval from the state Senate The
Workers' Compensation Court of Appeals dealsPenny  earned  about  16%  of  the  vote.
with cases involving worker injuries referred
to it on appeal, or transferred from districtThe state's Green Party has elected several
court. It has five judges appointed by thecity council members and other local
governor to six-year terms, followingoffice-holders in Duluth, Minneapolis and
approval from the state Senate Federal casesWinona, and has made strong runs for state
are heard in the United States District Courtlegislature during the past two election
for the District of Minnesota, which holdscycles. In 2000, Green Party candidate Ralph
court in Minneapolis, St. Paul, Duluth, andNader received just over 5% of the
Fergus Falls. Minnesota is part of the Eighthpresidential votes cast, gaining Major Party
Circuit Court of Appeals, which is based inStatus for the Green Party of Minnesota.
St. Louis, Missouri. Appeals beyond this



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