David W. Hann (born April 16, 1952) is an American politician and a former minority leader of the

Minnesota Senate The Minnesota Senate is the upper house of the Minnesota Legislature, Legislature of the U.S. state of Minnesota. At 67 members, half as many as the Minnesota House of Representatives, it is the largest upper house of any State legislature (Unite ...

. A Republican, he represented District 48, which consisted of the cities of

Eden Prairie Eden Prairie is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. It had a population of 64,198 at the 2020 census, making it the 16th-largest city in Minnesota. The city is adjacent to the north bank of the Minnesota River, upstream from ...

and Minnetonka, from 2003-2017. He was the chair 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 ...

from 2021 to 2024.

Early life, education, and career

Hann was born and raised in

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 ...

, Minnesota. He attended Lincoln High School in

Bloomington, Minnesota Bloomington is a city in Hennepin County, Minnesota, United States. It is located on the north bank of the Minnesota River above its confluence with the Mississippi River, south of downtown Minneapolis and just south of the Interstate 494/Inter ...

, then 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 ...

during the

Vietnam War The Vietnam War (1 November 1955 – 30 April 1975) was an armed conflict in Vietnam, Laos, and Cambodia fought between North Vietnam (Democratic Republic of Vietnam) and South Vietnam (Republic of Vietnam) and their allies. North Vietnam w ...

. He attended Gustavus Adolphus College in St. Peter, Minnesota, earning a B.A. in

Religion Religion is a range of social system, social-cultural systems, including designated religious behaviour, behaviors and practices, morals, beliefs, worldviews, religious text, texts, sanctified places, prophecies, ethics in religion, ethics, or ...

, and took graduate studies in

Theology Theology is the study of religious belief from a Religion, religious perspective, with a focus on the nature of divinity. It is taught as an Discipline (academia), academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itse ...

at the

University of Chicago The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, or UChi) is a Private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois, United States. Its main campus is in the Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood on Chicago's South Side, Chic ...

. Hann is a business process consultant. He used to be the Director of Forecasting and Logistics for E.A. Sween Company, also known as Deli Express, in

. He is also a former member of the Eden Prairie School Board, where he also served as clerk and treasurer. He is a member of the board of directors of the Hiawatha Leadership Academy, and is president of Parents for Accountable Schools.

Minnesota Senate

Hann served as an assistant Majority Leader from January through December 2011. He served on the Rules and Administration Committee. He has been chair of the Health and Human Services Committee and also served on the Education and Finance committees. He was an assistant minority leader from 2007 to 2009. His special legislative concerns included education, education reform, taxes, tax relief, business, improved business climate, family law, and agriculture. Hann has run unsuccessfully to be the Republican leader in the Minnesota Senate multiple times, most recently losing in 2011 to former Majority Leader

David Senjem David Howard Senjem ( ; born December 20, 1942) is an American politician currently serving on the Olmsted County Board of Commissioners. He is a former member of the Minnesota Senate, serving in that body from 2003 to 2023. He led the Republi ...

. Following the loss of the Republican majority in the 2012 election, Hann was elected by his caucus to serve as minority leader. Hann lost re-election to

Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party The Minnesota Democratic–Farmer–Labor Party (DFL) is a political party in the U.S. state of Minnesota affiliated with the national Democratic Party. The party was formed by a merger between the Minnesota Democratic Party and the Minneso ...

(DFL) candidate Steve Cwodzinski in 2016.

2010 Minnesota gubernatorial campaign

On July 16, 2009, Hann announced his candidacy for

governor of Minnesota The governor of Minnesota is the head of government of the U.S. state of Minnesota, leading the state's executive branch. Forty people have been governor of Minnesota, though historically there were also three governors of Minnesota Territory ...

. After statewide polling during and after the 2010 caucuses showed him trailing other contenders, he withdrew from the race on February 16, 2010, opting to focus on re-election to the Minnesota Senate.

References

External links

Minnesota Public Radio Votetracker: Senator David HannProject Vote Smart - Senator David Hann Profile
, - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Hann, David 1952 births 21st-century members of the Minnesota Legislature Living people People from Eden Prairie, Minnesota Politicians from Minneapolis Republican Party Minnesota state senators