Allen Ingvar Olson (born November 5, 1938) is an American Republican politician and attorney who served as the 28th

governor of North Dakota The governor of North Dakota is the head of government of North Dakota and serves as the commander-in-chief of the state's North Dakota National Guard, military forces. The Constitution of North Dakota specifies that "the executive power is ves ...

from 1981 to 1985. He defeated incumbent

Art Link Arthur Albert Link (May 24, 1914 – June 1, 2010) was an American politician and farmer of the North Dakota Democratic Party, and later the Democratic-NPL. He served as a U.S. Representative from 1971 to 1973 and as the 27th governor o ...

in the 1980 election and served one term.

Education, military service and legal career

Olson was born on November 5, 1938, in the small town of

Rolla, North Dakota Rolla ( ) is a city in Rolette County, North Dakota, United States. It is the county seat of Rolette County. The population was 1,223 at the 2020 census. The city contains a small park and a small outdoor pool. History Rolla was laid out in 1 ...

. He received a law degree from the

University of North Dakota The University of North Dakota (UND) is a Public university, public research university in Grand Forks, North Dakota, United States. It was established by the Dakota Territory, Dakota Territorial Assembly in 1883, six years before the establishm ...

where he joined

Lambda Chi Alpha Lambda Chi Alpha (), commonly referred to as Lambda Chi, is a fraternities and sororities, collegiate fraternity in North America. With over 300,000 initiates as of 2024, it is the third-largest social fraternity in the world by number of initia ...

fraternity and served in the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the primary Land warfare, land service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is designated as the Army of the United States in the United States Constitution.Article II, section 2, clause 1 of th ...

as a judge advocate general's corps lawyer. In 1967 he served as Chief of Military Justice in

Munich, West Germany Munich is the capital and most populous city of Bavaria, Germany. As of 30 November 2024, its population was 1,604,384, making it the third-largest city in Germany after Berlin and Hamburg. Munich is the largest city in Germany that is no ...

. From 1967 to 1969 he served as the assistant director of the Legislative Research Committee, which directed the state's first study of strip mining, soil banks and land reclamation. He entered the private practice of law in 1969 with the law firm of Conmy, Rosenberg, Lucas and Olson. He ran for attorney general in 1972 and served two terms in that position.

Governor of North Dakota

1980 Events January * January 4 – U.S. President Jimmy Carter proclaims a United States grain embargo against the Soviet Union, grain embargo against the USSR with the support of the European Commission. * January 6 – Global Positioning Sys ...

, Olson sought the governor's office and defeated incumbent Governor Arthur Link. His achievements during his term include the creation of the Department of Human Services and the conversion of the Cross-Ranch into a state park. He also worked with the Task Force on Drunk Driving and supported the Garrison Diversion program. A controversial lawsuit against the state by the Association of Retarded Citizens was also filed during his years as governor. He ran for reelection in

1984 Events January * January 1 – The Bornean Sultanate of Brunei gains full independence from the United Kingdom, having become a British protectorate in 1888. * January 7 – Brunei becomes the sixth member of the Association of Southeas ...

but was defeated by Democratic nominee

George A. Sinner George Albert Sinner (May 29, 1928 – March 9, 2018) was an American politician who served as the 29th governor of North Dakota from 1985 to 1992. He served two four-year terms and was the most recent governor of North Dakota from his party, th ...

, 55% to 45%.

Later professional career

After losing the election and leaving office, he returned to private law practice in Bismarck for a year before leaving for

Minneapolis Minneapolis is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 429,954 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the state's List of cities in Minnesota, most populous city. Locat ...

to join the law firm of Fredrikson and Byron. In 1987, he left the firm to become co-owner of a die-casting company based in

New Hope, Minnesota New Hope is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States and a suburb of Minneapolis. The population was 21,986 at the 2020 census. History New Hope was originally a farming community called Hope in Crystal Lake Township. In 1936, rura ...

. He also ran a community bank association for many years. He serves as a commissioner of the International Joint Commission of Canada and the United States, having been appointed to the position by President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician and businessman who was the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Bush family and the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he i ...

in 2002. On October 4, 2010, Olson announced that he was backing Independence Party candidate Tom Horner in the

2010 Minnesota gubernatorial election The 2010 Minnesota gubernatorial election was held on Tuesday, November 2, 2010, to elect the 40th Governor of the U.S. state of Minnesota for a four-year term to begin in January 2011. The general election was contested by the major party c ...

.''Ex-North Dakota governor adds name to Horner supporter list'' (Capitol Chatter)
October 4, 2010. Retrieved October 5, 2010.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Olson, Allen I. 1938 births American Presbyterians American people of Norwegian descent Republican Party governors of North Dakota United States Army Judge Advocate General's Corps North Dakota attorneys general University of North Dakota alumni Living people People from Rolette County, North Dakota Military personnel from North Dakota 20th-century North Dakota politicians