Arthur Albert Link (May 24, 1914 – June 1, 2010) was an American politician of the
North Dakota Democratic Party
The North Dakota Democratic Party was a political party in North Dakota that existed from the state's formation in 1889 until 1956, when the party merged with the Non Partisan League to form the modern North Dakota Democratic NPL Party.
For most ...
, and later the
Democratic-NPL. He served as a
U.S. Representative
The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...
from 1971 to 1973 and as the
27th Governor of North Dakota from 1973 to 1981.
Life and career
Link was born in
Alexander
Alexander is a male given name. The most prominent bearer of the name is Alexander the Great, the king of the Ancient Greek kingdom of Macedonia who created one of the largest empires in ancient history.
Variants listed here are Aleksandar, Al ...
,
North Dakota
North Dakota () is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota Sioux. North Dakota is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minnesota to the east, S ...
. He attended the McKenzie County schools, and
North Dakota Agricultural College
North Dakota State University (NDSU, formally North Dakota State University of Agriculture and Applied Sciences) is a public land-grant research university in Fargo, North Dakota. It was founded as North Dakota Agricultural College in 1890 as th ...
. Link began a career as a farmer soon after his 1939 marriage, and became active in politics as a member of the local chapters of the
National Farmers' Union and
Nonpartisan League
The Nonpartisan League (NPL) was a left-wing political party founded in 1915 in North Dakota by Arthur C. Townley, a former organizer for the Socialist Party of America. On behalf of small farmers and merchants, the Nonpartisan League advocat ...
. He was elected to the North Dakota House of Representatives in 1946 as a
Democrat. Link served for 14 years as the house's minority leader, and was speaker of the house from 1965 to 1967. He was also a member of the Randolph Township Board, 1942–1972;
McKenzie County
McKenzie County is a county in the U.S. state of North Dakota. As of the 2020 census, the population was 14,704. Its county seat is Watford City.
The county lies immediately adjacent to the Williston Micropolitan Statistical Area, althoug ...
Welfare Board, 1948–1969; Randolph School Board, 1945–1963; county and State Farm Security Administration committee, 1941–1946; and delegate, North Dakota State conventions, 1964–1968.
[
In 1970, Link was persuaded to run for U.S. Congress from the western district of North Dakota to succeed Republican incumbent ]Thomas S. Kleppe
Thomas Savig Kleppe (July 1, 1919 – March 2, 2007) was an American politician who served as the Representative from North Dakota. He was also the Administrator of the Small Business Administration and the U.S. Secretary of the Interior.
Early l ...
, who ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. Senate. It was a job with little long-term security as by then it appeared certain the state would be reduced to a single congressional district after the census. He was narrowly elected as a Dem-NPLer to the Ninety-second Congress (January 3, 1971 – January 2, 1973) in a mild surprise. Link opted not to challenge the state's veteran incumbent (Republican Mark Andrews) for re-election in the new at-large district in 1972
Within the context of Coordinated Universal Time (UTC) it was the longest year ever, as two leap seconds were added during this 366-day year, an event which has not since been repeated. (If its start and end are defined using Solar time, me ...
and instead ran for Governor of North Dakota. Elected in 1972 and reelected in 1976, Link served from January 2, 1973, until January 6, 1981.[
Link was well liked and well respected as a governor. Those of all political persuasions found common ground with him. Some considered him a social conservative who was staunchly ]anti-abortion
Anti-abortion movements, also self-styled as pro-life or abolitionist movements, are involved in the abortion debate advocating against the practice of abortion and its legality. Many anti-abortion movements began as countermovements in respo ...
, deeply religious and willing to stand for principle even when political wisdom dictated otherwise, vetoing a bill to lower the state minimum drinking age to 19 years and providing leadership against legalizing gambling in the state. Others viewed him as a moderate as he was also astute fiscally, managing to avoid raising taxes of one of the poorer states in the nation.[ Still others saw him as a progressive, since he was still able to maintain and grow an excellent education system with affordable universities and students who consistently achieve some of the top test scores in the United States.
He was nominated to run for a third term but narrowly lost re-election in 1980.
]
Later life
After his defeat for re-election, Link remained active in public life, leading a successful fight against a state lottery
In the United States, lotteries are run by 48 jurisdictions: 45 states plus the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Lotteries are subject to the laws of and operated independently by each jurisdiction, and there is no ...
in 1984. He also remained a strong force for historical preservation and writing of local histories. He and his wife Grace lived in Bismarck, North Dakota.
He is fondly remembered by North Dakotans and former North Dakotans, Dem-NPLers and Republicans alike as one of the best governors the state ever enjoyed. Though the Democratic-NPL has been able to elect only one governor since Link vacated the office in 1981, they managed to occupy all the seats in the state's federal congressional delegation from 1987 until January 2011, with every member therein having served during the Link Administration.
A movie was made of the Links' lives in 2008, entitled: "When the Landscape is Quiet Again".
Link died at St. Alexius Hospital on June 1, 2010, in Bismarck, just eight days after his 96th birthday.[
]
References
External links
North Dakota Historical Society: Arthur Link
{{DEFAULTSORT:Link, Arthur A.
1914 births
2010 deaths
Democratic Party governors of North Dakota
American Lutherans
People from McKenzie County, North Dakota
North Dakota State University alumni
School board members in North Dakota
Speakers of the North Dakota House of Representatives
Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from North Dakota
20th-century American politicians
20th-century Lutherans
Democratic Party members of the North Dakota House of Representatives