Bob Gunther (born July 12, 1943) is a

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

politician and former member of the

Minnesota House of Representatives The Minnesota House of Representatives is the lower chamber of the U.S. state of Minnesota's Minnesota Legislature, legislature. It operates in conjunction with the Minnesota Senate, the state's upper chamber, to write and pass legislation, whic ...

. A member of the

Republican Party of Minnesota The Republican Party of Minnesota is the state affiliate of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party in Minnesota and the oldest active political party in the state. Founded in 1855, the party is headquartered in Edina, Minnesota, E ...

, he represented the 23A district, which includes all or portions of Blue Earth, Faribault,

Jackson Jackson may refer to: Places Australia * Jackson, Queensland, a town in the Maranoa Region * Jackson North, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson South, Queensland, a locality in the Maranoa Region * Jackson oil field in Durham, ...

Martin Martin may refer to: Places Antarctica * Martin Peninsula, Marie Byrd Land * Port Martin, Adelie Land * Point Martin, South Orkney Islands Europe * Martin, Croatia, a village * Martin, Slovakia, a city * Martín del Río, Aragón, Spain * M ...

and Watonwan counties.

Early life and education

Gunther was born in

Sioux City, Iowa Sioux City () is a city in Woodbury County, Iowa, Woodbury and Plymouth County, Iowa, Plymouth counties in the U.S. state of Iowa. The population was 85,797 in the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, making it the List of cities in Iowa, fo ...

, and graduated from Fairmont High School in Fairmont. He served in the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...

until age 26, then earned a Bachelor of Science degree in marketing from

Saint Cloud State University St. Cloud State University (SCSU) is a public university in St. Cloud, Minnesota, United States. Founded in 1869, the university is one of the largest institutions in the Minnesota State Colleges and Universities system. In the fall of 2023, it ...

Career

Gunther co-owned Gunther's Foods in Fairmont and

Elmore Elmore may refer to: Places United States *Elmore, Alabama *Elmore, Illinois * Elmore, Minnesota *Elmore, Ohio * Elmore City, Oklahoma * Elmore, Vermont *Elmore, Wisconsin *Elmore County (disambiguation) *Elmore Township (disambiguation) *Lake Elm ...

. Gunther was first elected to the Minnesota House of Representatives as a Republican in 1995 in a special election held after Representative Gene Hugoson was appointed Minnesota commissioner of agriculture. He served until 2021, after not seeking reelection in 2020. Until

redistricting Redistricting in the United States is the process of drawing electoral district boundaries. For the United States House of Representatives, and state legislatures, redistricting occurs after each ten-year census. The U.S. Constitution in Art ...

in 2002, Gunther represented district 26A.

Personal life

Gunther is married to Nancy, and they have one child. He is a member of the Bethel Evangelical Free Church. He enjoys reading

Louis L'Amour Louis Dearborn L'Amour (; né LaMoore; March 22, 1908 – June 10, 1988) was an American novelist and short story writer. His books consisted primarily of Western novels, though he called his work "frontier stories". His most widely known West ...

and

Robert Ludlum Robert Ludlum (May 25, 1927 – March 12, 2001) was an American author of 27 Thriller (genre), thriller novels, best known as the creator of Jason Bourne from the original ''Bourne (novel series), The Bourne Trilogy'' series. The number of copi ...

References

External links

Minnesota Public Radio Votetracker: Rep. Bob Gunther

Project Votesmart: Rep. Bob Gunther Profile

Vance, Daniel J. "Mr. Whipple goes to St. Paul." Connect Business Magazine
{{DEFAULTSORT:Gunther, Bob 1943 births Living people 20th-century evangelicals 21st-century evangelicals People from Fairmont, Minnesota Republican Party members of the Minnesota House of Representatives Members of the Evangelical Free Church of America 21st-century members of the Minnesota Legislature