David Frederickson

Dave Frederickson
Member of the Minnesota Senate from the 20th district
In office January 6, 1987 – January 4, 1993
Personal details
Born	March 2, 1944 (1944-03-02) (age 67) Murdock, Minnesota
Political party	Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party
Spouse(s)	Kay
Children	2
Residence	Roseville, Minnesota
Alma mater	St. Cloud State University
Occupation	Farmer, Politician

David J. “Dave” Frederickson (born March 2, 1944) is a Minnesota politician, the state's current commissioner of agriculture, and a former member of the Minnesota Senate from southwestern Minnesota.^[1]

Background

From the small town of Murdock, Frederickson graduated from St. Cloud State University in St. Cloud, earning his B.S. in Education. A fourth-generation farmer, he earned a reputation as a strong advocate for farmers and agricultural issues, education and tax reform.^[1]

Service in Minnesota Senate

First elected to the Senate in 1986 in the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party’s “firestorm” that swept through the region, giving Democrats unprecedented control of southwestern Minnesota for the next several election cycles, Frederickson served two terms. He was re-elected in 1990. He represented the old District 20, which included all or portions of Chippewa, Lac Qui Parle, Redwood, Swift and Yellow Medicine counties.^[1]

While in the legislature, Frederickson was a member of the Senate Agriculture and Rural Development, Education, Local and Urban Government, Taxes and Tax Laws and Governmental Operations committees, and of various sub-committees relevant to each area. He chaired the Agriculture and Rural Development Subcommittee on Agriculture Resources during the 1991 and 1992 sessions.^[1]

Farmers Union leadership

After Frederickson's service in the legislature concluded, he was elected president of the Minnesota Farmers Union, serving from 1991 to 2002. In 2002, he was elected president of the National Farmers Union, a national federation of State Farmers Union organizations in the United States and the second largest general farm organization in the country, serving until 2006.^[2] In 2009, he received the NFU’s Meritorious Award for his years of service on behalf of Minnesota and American farmers. He worked as an Agricultural Outreach Director for U.S. Senator Amy Klobuchar from 2007 to 2010.^[1][3]

State commissioner

On December 21, 2010, Minnesota Governor-elect Mark Dayton announced that Frederickson would be the state's new commissioner of agriculture, succeeding long-time commissioner and former state representative Gene Hugoson, who held the position since 1995. He took over the department on January 3, 2011.^[4][3]

References

1. ^ ^{a b c d e} "Minnesota Legislators Past & Present – Legislator Record – Frederickson, David J". Leg.state.mn.us. http://www.leg.state.mn.us/legdb/fulldetail.asp?ID=10194. Retrieved July 20, 2010. 
2. ^ "National Farmers Union". Nfu.org. http://nfu.org/. Retrieved July 20, 2010. 
3. ^ ^{a b} "Dave Frederickson, Commissioner". Mda.state.mn.us. http://www.mda.state.mn.us/about/commissionersoffice/frederickson.aspx. Retrieved September 23, 2011. 
4. ^ "Dayton names former lawmaker as agriculture commissioner". StarTribune.com. December 21, 2010. http://www.startribune.com/politics/112247099.html?elr=KArksLckD8EQDUoaEyqyP4O:DW3ckUiD3aPc:_Yyc:aUnciaec8O7EyUsl. Retrieved September 23, 2011. 

External links

• David Frederickson at Minnesota Legislators Past & Present
• Minnesota Department of Agriculture: Commissioner David Frederickson
• David Frederickson at National Farmer's Union
• David Frederickson at National Farmer's Union Pt. 2

Persondata
Name	Frederickson, David
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	March 2, 1944
Place of birth	Murdock, Minnesota
Date of death
Place of death