# Linda Berglin *Former DFL member of the Minnesota House of Representatives and the Minnesota Senate* Linda Lee Berglin (born October 19, 1944) is a former Democratic member of the [[Minnesota Senate]]. She held District 61, which takes in parts of [[Minneapolis]] in Hennepin County.[^1] She won her first Senate election in 1980 and was returned at every later election.[^1] Her resignation took effect on August 15, 2011, when she left to work for Hennepin County.[^1] Before entering the Senate, Berglin sat in the [[Minnesota House of Representatives]], where she was first elected in 1972.[^2] In the Senate she chaired the health and human services committees from 1983 to 1996 and the Human Resources Finance Committee from 1997 to 2000.[^2] The cited source lists her offices, committee posts and dates. It does not document the text, the votes or the effect of any bill she sponsored.[^2] ## Who Berglin was born on October 19, 1944, and served in the Legislature as a Democrat.[^1] She held the post of Assistant DFL Caucus Leader in 1979.[^2] She finished Roosevelt High School in Minneapolis in 1963.[^3] In 1967 the Minneapolis College of Art and Design awarded her a B.F.A. in graphic design.[^3] During the 1970s she worked in design, both for the firm Brookson Broenen Design and for the planning department of the [[City of Minneapolis]].[^3] ## What In the House, Berglin was an assistant majority leader from 1977 to 1980.[^2] Over the same years she chaired the Minnesota Commission on the Economic Status of Women. Her membership on that commission ran from 1977 to 2002.[^2] Her Senate committee chairmanships covered the health and human services committees, under their earlier names, from 1983 to 1996.[^2] She then chaired the Human Resources Finance Committee from 1997 to 2000.[^2] By the end of her tenure she sat on the Capital Investment, Finance, Health and Human Services, and Rules and Administration committees.[^2] She also sat on the Rules and Administration Subcommittee for Committees.[^2] The source names her special legislative concerns as:[^2] - health and welfare; - corrections; - taxes; - urban affairs; - women's issues; - minorities; - senior citizens; - small business. In 1994 she ran for the [[United States Senate]]. She dropped out before the DFL endorsing convention.[^2] Outside the Legislature, she led the Minneapolis Model Cities Board from 1968 to 1972.[^3] She was a member of the PACER Advisory Board from 1996 to 2002.[^3] She belongs to the Minnesota Health Care Consumer Advisory Board and to the Powderhorn Community Council in Minneapolis.[^3] ## When Berglin's legislative career unfolded as follows: - **1972:** first won a House seat, in what was then House District 59A.[^2] - **1974, 1976 and 1978:** returned to the House at each election.[^2] - **1980:** moved to the Senate.[^1] - **July 25, 2011:** announced that she would resign her Senate seat to become a health policy program manager for Hennepin County.[^2] - **August 15, 2011:** her resignation took effect.[^2] - **October 18, 2011:** date set for the special election to fill the open seat.[^2] ## Where District 61 lies in Hennepin County, within the Twin Cities metropolitan area.[^1] Redistricting changed the number of the area she represented. Before the 1982 redistricting it was numbered District 59, and before the 1992 redistricting it was numbered District 60.[^1] ## In the Minnesota record ### Who - Linda Lee Berglin, Democrat (DFL), born October 19, 1944.[^1] ### What - Member of the [[Minnesota House of Representatives]], 1972 to 1980.[^2] - Member of the [[Minnesota Senate]], 1980 to 2011.[^1] - Chair of the Senate health and human services committees, 1983–1996.[^2] - Chair of the Human Resources Finance Committee, 1997–2000.[^2] ### When - Resignation announced July 25, 2011, and effective August 15, 2011.[^2] - Special election scheduled for October 18, 2011.[^2] ### Where - Senate District 61, Hennepin County, including parts of Minneapolis.[^1] ## Notes [^1]: Wikipedia contributors, *Linda Berglin* (revision 1373154919, retrieved 2026-10-27), lead section — establishes her birth date, party, Senate District 61, Senate election in 1980, resignation effective August 15, 2011, and the earlier district numbers. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linda_Berglin [^2]: Wikipedia contributors, *Linda Berglin* (revision 1373154919, retrieved 2026-10-27), section "Leadership in the Minnesota House and Senate" — establishes her House elections, leadership posts, Commission service, committee chairs and memberships, 1994 candidacy, the July 25, 2011 announcement, and the October 18, 2011 special election. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linda_Berglin [^3]: Wikipedia contributors, *Linda Berglin* (revision 1373154919, retrieved 2026-10-27), section "Education and community service" — establishes her schooling, design employment, Model Cities Board and PACER service, and community memberships. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Linda_Berglin