Martin Olav Sabo
Martin Olav Sabo | |
---|---|
Speaker of the Minnesota House of Representatives | |
In office 1973–1979 | |
Preceded by | Aubrey W. Dirlam |
Succeeded by | Rod Searle |
Member of the Minnesota House of Representatives | |
In office 1961–1978 | |
Personal details | |
Born | Augsburg College | February 28, 1938
Martin Olav Sabo (February 28, 1938 – March 13, 2016) was an American politician who served as
Early life and education
Sabo was born in
Career
Minnesota Legislature
He was elected to the
U.S. Congress
When eight-term incumbent and fellow
During the
A Lutheran, Sabo was married and had two children and six grandchildren. His daughter, Julie Sabo, is a former member of the Minnesota Senate and was the 2002 DFL nominee for Lieutenant Governor of Minnesota. Sabo was inducted into the Scandinavian-American Hall of Fame in 1994. During the course of his career Sabo referred to himself as a "liberal decentrist", preferring progressive politics, but local control instead of federal control.[3]
Sabo was considered to be the most liberal member of the Minnesota delegation in the 109th Congress, scoring 4% conservative by a conservative group[4] and 90% progressive by a liberal group.[5]
Later career
On March 18, 2006, he announced that he would not seek reelection for the 110th Congress, ending 46 years as an elected official, including 28 years in Congress – the third-longest tenure in either house of Congress in the state's history, behind only fellow Democrats Jim Oberstar[3][6] and Colin Peterson. He endorsed his longtime chief of staff, Mike Erlandson, in the DFL primary—the real contest in this district. Erlandson lost to State Representative Keith Ellison, also a progressive DFLer, who won the general election and succeeded Sabo on January 4, 2007.
Sabo served as a co-chair of the National Transportation Policy Project at the Bipartisan Policy Center.[7] For his work on acquiring funding for transportation projects and specifically pedestrian and bicycling funding, the Midtown Greenway bridge in Minneapolis was named the Martin Olav Sabo Bridge.
Personal life
Sabo died March 13, 2016, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, at the age of 78.[8] He had been hospitalized with breathing difficulties.[9]
U.S Senator Amy Klobuchar called Sabo a "friend and mentor," and Governor Mark Dayton praised him as "a great political leader and an outstanding public servant."[10] Sabo was a lifelong smoker until he quit in 2003.
Electoral history
- 2004 race for U.S. House of Representatives – 5th district
- Martin Olav Sabo (DFL) (inc.), 70%
- Daniel Mathias (R), 24%
- Jay Pond(G), 6%
References
- ^ "Sabo, Martin Olav - Legislator Record - Minnesota Legislators Past & Present". www.lrl.mn.gov. Retrieved February 2, 2024.
- ^ "During the Clinton administration was the federal budget balanced? Was the federal deficit erased? Yes to Both Questions". FactCheck.org. Archived from the original on May 26, 2011.
- ^ a b "Longtime Minnesota Rep. Sabo to Announce Retirement". Fox News. March 18, 2006.
- ^ "Congressional Voting Scorecard 2005" (PDF). SBE Council’s Congressional Voting Scorecard 2005. Small Business & Entrepreneurship Council. June 2006. Archived from the original (PDF) on September 29, 2006. Retrieved November 2, 2006.
- ^ "Leading with the Left". Progressive Punch. Retrieved November 2, 2006.
- ^ http://www.startribune.com/587/story/315645.html[permanent dead link]
- ^ [1] "National Transportation Policy Project"
- ^ "Martin Olav Sabo, longtime Minnesota representative, has died – Twin Cities". March 13, 2016. Retrieved March 13, 2016.
- ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved February 2, 2024.
- ^ Walsh, Paul. "Martin Sabo, longtime DFL congressman and politician, dies". StarTribune.com. Star Tribune. Retrieved March 13, 2016.
External links
- United States Congress. "Martin Olav Sabo (id: S000005)". Biographical Directory of the United States Congress.
- Martin Sabo legislative and congressional papers are available for research at the Minnesota Historical Society
- Appearances on C-SPAN