Alpha Mathilda Sunde Smaby (February 11, 1910 – July 18, 1991)[1] was an American politician and teacher. She represented Hennepin County for two terms in the Minnesota House of Representatives, in office from 1965 to 1969, and was the third woman elected to the Minnesota legislature. She was listed as Eugene McCarthy's vice-presidential running mate in 1988, as the Minnesota Progressive Party's ticket.
Alpha Sunde Smaby | |
|---|---|
| Born | Alpha Mathilda Sunde February 11, 1910 Sacred Heart, Minnesota, U.S. |
| Died | July 18, 1991 (aged 81) Saint Paul, Minnesota, U.S. |
| Occupations | Educator, poltician |
| Term | Minnesota House of Representatives (1965-1969) |
Early life and education
editSunde was born in Sacred Heart, Minnesota,[1] and raised in Peterson, Minnesota, the daughter of Alfred T. Sunde and Mathilda D. Hovde Sunde. Her father ran a creamery. She graduated from the University of Minnesota and Winona State University. In the 1980s she earned a master's degree in history.[2]
Career
editSmaby taught school and worked for Cargill before she married in 1939. Smaby was the third woman elected to the Minnesota legislature, when she served in the Minnesota House of Representatives for two terms from 1965 until 1969 and was a Democrat.[1] In 1967 she helped organize the Minnesota Concerned Democrats, an anti-Vietnam War faction.[3][4] During the 1968 United States presidential election, Smaby was a delegate to the Democratic Party Convention and supported United States Senator Eugene McCarthy.[3]
Smaby ran for Minneapolis City Council in 1969.[5] In 1973, she sought a consumer representative seat on the Northern States Power Company board of directors.[6][7] She published a book, Political Upheaval: Minnesota and the Vietnam War Protest (1987), based on oral history interviews she conducted for her master's thesis.[3][4] She was McCarthy's vice-presidential running mate in Minnesota in 1988, representing the Minnesota Progressive Party. She and McCarthy received 5,403 votes.[8]
Personal life and legacy
editSunde married Arthur Jonathan Smaby in 1939. They had three daughters.[9] Her husband died in 1972, and she died from cancer in 1991, in Saint Paul, Minnesota.[2][10] David Durenburger read a tribute to Smaby on the floor of the United States Senate in July 1991, in tribute.[11] Her research files are in the collection of the Minnesota Historical Society.[12] Her granddaughter Kate Nowlin is an actress.[13]
Notes
edit- 1 2 3 University of Minnesota Libraries. "Alpha Sunde Smaby, Candidate". Minnesota Historical Election Archive. Retrieved May 16, 2026.
- 1 2 Pheifer, Pat (July 19, 1991). "Legislator Alpha Sunde Smaby dies; was active in politics, antiwar effort". Star Tribune. pp. 1B, 6B. Retrieved May 17, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
- 1 2 3 Spaeth, Robert L. (January 24, 1988). "State DFL's 1968 'civil war' recounted in Smaby book". Star Tribune. p. 80. Retrieved May 17, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
- 1 2 Connelly, Tim (April 16, 1988). "Recountin of DFL split over Vietnam is slightly confusing". Post-Bulletin. p. 36. Retrieved May 17, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ Hartgen, Stephen (May 26, 1969). "2nd Ward aldermanic race appears tossup". The Minneapolis Star. p. 43. Retrieved May 17, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ Fuller, Jim (March 26, 1973). "Consumer braves maze, seeks NSP post". Star Tribune. pp. 1A, 4A. Retrieved May 17, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Smaby loses fight for NSP post". St. Cloud Times. September 28, 1973. p. 1. Retrieved May 17, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "1988 Presidential General Election Results - Minnesota". US Election Atlas.
- ↑ Hobbs, Maurice (October 29, 1964). "Both Sides Hopeful in 41st Scramble". The Minneapolis Star. p. 76. Retrieved May 17, 2026 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "Smaby, Alpha Sunde - Legislator Record - Minnesota Legislators Past & Present". Minnesota Legislature. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
- ↑ United States Congress (July 22, 1991). Congressional Record: Proceedings and Debates of the ... Congress. U.S. Government Printing Office. pp. 19111–19112.
- ↑ Davey, Katie Jean. "Vietnam War & Minnesota: Minnesota's Home Front". LibGuides. Retrieved May 16, 2026.
- ↑ Chadda, Maya (September 1, 2018). "Kate Nowlin: Stories With Dimension". Minnesota Women's Press. Retrieved May 16, 2026.