| Thomas M. Bakk | |
|---|---|
| 14th Minnesota Senate Minority Leader | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office January 4, 2011 |
|
| Preceded by | Dave Senjem |
| Member of the Minnesota Senate from the 6th district |
|
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 2003 |
|
| Preceded by | Doug Johnson |
| Minnesota State Representative from District 6A | |
| In office 1995–2003 |
|
| Preceded by | David Peter Battaglia |
| Succeeded by | David Dill |
| Personal details | |
| Born | June 8, 1954 Virginia, Minnesota |
| Political party | DFL |
| Spouse(s) | Laura |
| Children | 4 |
| Residence | Cook, Minnesota |
| Alma mater | Mesabi Community College University of Minnesota Duluth |
| Occupation | labor representative, legislator |
| Religion | Lutheran |
Thomas M. Bakk (born June 8, 1954) is a Minnesota politician and a member of the Minnesota Senate who represents District 6, which includes portions of Carlton, Cook, Koochiching, Lake and St. Louis counties in the northeastern part of the state.[1] He is the current Senate Minority Leader.[2]
Contents |
Bakk completed his secondary education at Cook High School in Cook, and went on to receive an A.A. from Mesabi Community College and a B.A. from the University of Minnesota Duluth. He and his wife, Laura, have four children.[1]
A member of the Minnesota Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party, Bakk was first elected to the Senate in 2002, and was reelected in 2006 and 2010. Before that, he represented District 6A in the Minnesota House of Representatives from 1995 to 2003.[1]
Bakk is a member of the Senate's Rules & Administration and Taxes committees and also serves on the Rules and Administration subcommittees for Committees and Conference Committees. He was chair of the Taxes Committee from 2007 to 2011.[3]
Bakk campaigned in the 2010 Minnesota gubernatorial election. He led in early fundraising among the DFL Party hopefuls, raising $146,000 in 2008. He began 2009 with a little more than $131,000. He ended his campaign in March 2010.[4]
After the 2010 midterm elections, Bakk was elected by his caucus to serve as Minority Leader during the 2011-12 biennium. He is the first Democrat to serve as a minority leader since Nick Coleman in 1972.[2]
| Minnesota Senate Election District 6, 2010[5] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Democratic | Thomas M. Bakk (incumbent) | 21,728 | 62.94% | -8.39% | |
| Republican | Jennifer Havlick | 12,742 | 36.91% | +8.5% | |
| Minnesota Senate Election District 6, 2006[6] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Democratic | Thomas M. Bakk (incumbent) | 25,275 | 71.33% | ||
| Republican | Jennifer Havlick | 10,065 | 28.41% | ||
| Minnesota Senate Election District 6, 2002[7] | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Party | Candidate | Votes | % | ±% | |
| Democratic | Thomas M. Bakk | 23,034 | 72% | ||
| Independence | Tom Norman | 8,868 | 28% | ||
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Dave Senjem |
Minnesota Senate Minority Leader 2011 – |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
| Preceded by Doug Johnson |
State Senator from Minnesota's 6th Senate District 2003 – Present |
Succeeded by Incumbent |
| Preceded by David Battaglia |
State Representative from Minnesota District 6A 1995 – 2003 |
Succeeded by David Dill |
|
|
|||||||
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||