Odin Elsford Stanley Langen (January 5, 1913 – July 6, 1976) was an American politician from the state of

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 ...

. He served six terms in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...

from 1959 to 1971.

Early life and career

Odin Langen was born 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 ...

. His family moved to Kennedy, Minnesota around 1914. He attended the public schools and Dunwoody Institute in Minneapolis from 1933 to 1934. He engaged in farming in Kittson County near Kennedy, Minnesota and was associated with Production Marketing Administration in Kittson County, Minnesota from 1935 to 1950.

Political career

Langen was a member of the Kennedy (Minnesota) School Board and served as its president from 1948 to 1950. Langen also served on the South Red River Town Board from 1947 to 1950. He was elected to 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 ...

where he served from 1951 to 1959. He became the Republican leader of the state house in 1957. In 1958, he ran for the

against the incumbent DFL Party representative Coya Knutson. Although Knutson was initially expected to win the race, her husband released a letter now known as the " Coya, Come Home" letter publicly pleading with her to give up her career in Washington. The letter damaged her campaign and Langen won by 1,390 votes. Langen voted in favor of the Civil Rights Acts of 1960,

1964 Events January * January 1 – The Federation of Rhodesia and Nyasaland is dissolved. * January 5 – In the first meeting between leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches since the fifteenth century, Pope Paul VI and Patria ...

,and

1968 Events January–February * January 1968, January – The I'm Backing Britain, I'm Backing Britain campaign starts spontaneously. * January 5 – Prague Spring: Alexander Dubček is chosen as leader of the Communist Party of Cze ...

, as well as the 24th Amendment to the U.S. Constitution and the

Voting Rights Act of 1965 The Voting Rights Act of 1965 is a landmark piece of federal legislation in the United States that prohibits racial discrimination in voting. It was signed into law by President Lyndon B. Johnson during the height of the civil rights move ...

. He won re-election five times serving on the

Agriculture Agriculture encompasses crop and livestock production, aquaculture, and forestry for food and non-food products. Agriculture was a key factor in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created ...

and Appropriations. In 1970, Langen faced off against

Robert Bergland Robert Selmer Bergland (July 22, 1928 – December 9, 2018) was an American politician. He served as a member of the House of Representatives from Minnesota's 7th congressional district from 1971 to 1977, and he served as United States Secretary ...

, whom he defeated in

. Bergland, a farmer and former Agriculture Department official, benefited from local agricultural concerns and defeated Langen.

Later career

After his defeat, he became Administrator of the Packers and Stockyards Administration of the

United States Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is an executive department of the United States federal government that aims to meet the needs of commercial farming and livestock food production, promotes agricultural trade and producti ...

from January 1971 to April 1972, when he resigned to resume farming pursuits in Kennedy, Minnesota.

Personal life

He was married to Lillian Thelma Clauson (1911–1988) with whom he had three children. Odin Langen died in 1976. His funeral was held at the Red River Lutheran Church in Kennedy, Minnesota.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Langen, Odin 1913 births 1976 deaths Farmers from Minnesota Politicians from Minneapolis People from Kittson County, Minnesota Republican Party members of the Minnesota House of Representatives Lutherans from Minnesota American people of Norwegian descent Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Minnesota School board members in Minnesota United States Department of Agriculture officials 20th-century Lutherans 20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives 20th-century members of the Minnesota Legislature