Politics of Minnesota

Minnesota is known for a politically active citizenry, with populism being a longstanding force among the state's political parties. Minnesota has consistently high voter turnout; in the 2008 U.S. presidential election, 77.8% of eligible Minnesotans voted – the highest percentage of any U.S. state or territory – versus the national average of 61.7%. This was due in part to its same day voter registration laws; previously unregistered voters can register on election day, at their polls, with evidence of residency.

The major political parties are the Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL) and the Republican Party of Minnesota. The DFL was founded in 1944 when the Minnesota Democratic Party and Minnesota Farmer–Labor Party merged. The party is affiliated with the national Democratic Party. Supporters of the DFL are often referred to as "DFLers" in Minnesota by both members and non-members of the party as an alternative to "Democrats." The state Republican Party is affiliated with the national Republican Party.

Historian Annette Atkins has explored the changing long-term pattern of Minnesota politics. In the late nineteenth and early twentieth century, the heavily rural state was hostile to business and railroads, with the Republicans dominant in the small towns, and the Democrats on the farms. Numerous left-wing groups and third-parties emerged, such as the Anti-Monopolist party in the 1870s, the Populists in the 1890s, the Non-Partisan League in the 1910s, and the Farmer–Labor party in the 1930s. Isolationism was strong, Adkins argues, because of the fear that Eastern bankers and industrialists forced the United States into World War I to enlarge their profits. Business fought unions, and the unions fought back, and with the governor on their side unions won some violent battles in the 1930s. In recent decades, however, the liberal coalition has weakened. Labor unions are a shadow of their old strength. Most farmers have left for the towns and especially the Twin Cities, where half the people live. The New Right has mobilized social conservatives, especially those from traditional religious backgrounds, with abortion a furiously contested issue. State government has become much more friendly toward growth and the needs of business entrepreneurship. Environmentalism has split left and right, with the industrial workers in the Up North and Iron Range districts demanding that their jobs be protected from environmentalists. Adkins finds that:

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