Thomas E. Huntley (born February 10, 1938) 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

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), he represented District 7A, which includes portions of the city of

Duluth Duluth ( ) is a Port, port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of St. Louis County, Minnesota, St. Louis County. Located on Lake Superior in Minnesota's Arrowhead Region, the city is a hub for cargo shipping. The population ...

in St. Louis County in the northeastern part of the state. He is a retired associate professor of

biochemistry Biochemistry, or biological chemistry, is the study of chemical processes within and relating to living organisms. A sub-discipline of both chemistry and biology, biochemistry may be divided into three fields: structural biology, enzymology, a ...

and

molecular biology Molecular biology is a branch of biology that seeks to understand the molecule, molecular basis of biological activity in and between Cell (biology), cells, including biomolecule, biomolecular synthesis, modification, mechanisms, and interactio ...

at the

University of Minnesota Duluth The University of Minnesota Duluth (UMD) is a public university in Duluth, Minnesota, United States. It is part of the University of Minnesota System. UMD offers 17 bachelor's degrees in 87 majors, graduate programs in 24 different fields, a tw ...

and former director of Institutional Relations at the University's School of Medicine.

Early life, education, and career

Huntley graduated from

Cretin High School Cretin-Derham Hall High School (CDH) is a private, co-educational Catholic high school in Saint Paul, Minnesota operated by the Archdiocese of Saint Paul and Minneapolis. It is co-sponsored by the Brothers of the Christian Schools and the Sister ...

Saint Paul Paul, also named Saul of Tarsus, commonly known as Paul the Apostle and Saint Paul, was a Christian apostle ( AD) who spread the teachings of Jesus in the first-century world. For his contributions towards the New Testament, he is generally ...

, and attended the

University of Minnesota The University of Minnesota Twin Cities (historically known as University of Minnesota) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul, Twin Cities of Minneapolis and Saint ...

, receiving his B.S. in

chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules a ...

in 1960. He earned his

Ph.D. A Doctor of Philosophy (PhD, DPhil; or ) is a terminal degree that usually denotes the highest level of academic achievement in a given discipline and is awarded following a course of graduate study and original research. The name of the deg ...

in biochemistry from the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...

Iowa City Iowa City is the largest city in Johnson County, Iowa, United States, and its county seat. At the time of the 2020 census the population was 74,828, making it the state's fifth-most populous city. The Iowa City metropolitan area, which enc ...

in 1970. Prior to being elected to the legislature, Huntley was active in

Twin Ports The Duluth MN–WI Metropolitan Area, commonly called the Twin Ports, is a small metropolitan area centered around the cities of Duluth, Minnesota and Superior, Wisconsin. The Twin Ports are located at the western part of Lake Superior (the we ...

area government. He served on the Minnesota

Great Lakes Commission The Great Lakes Commission is a United States interstate agency established in 1955 through the Great Lakes Basin Compact, in order to "promote the orderly, integrated and comprehensive development, use and conservation of the water resources of ...

, on the

Duluth City Council The Duluth City Council is the legislative branch of the government of Duluth, Minnesota Duluth ( ) is a Port, port city in the U.S. state of Minnesota and the county seat of St. Louis County, Minnesota, St. Louis County. Located on Lake Su ...

(1984–1988), and as a commissioner on the Minnesota Seaway Port Authority of Duluth (1988–1993). He was also the president of the Seaway Port Authority from 1990-1992.

Minnesota House of Representatives

Huntley was first elected to the Minnesota legislature in 1992. He was the chair of the Finance Subcommittee for the Health Care and Human Services Finance Division from 2007 to 2010. He was a member of the Governor's Joint Health Care Task Force, of the Legislative Commission on Health Care Access, and of the Task Force on Small Business Health Insurance. He announced on December 17, 2013 that he would not be seeking re-election in 2014.

Personal life

His wife, Gail, is a former DFL Party activist and state associate chair. Huntley was arrested on February 2, 2013, near Deerwood, Minnesota, on suspicion of driving under the influence of alcohol after being stopped for speeding. He subsequently announced that he was guilty of the charge, intended to plead guilty, and apologized to constituents for his actions.

References

External links

Rep. Tom Huntley
''official Minnesota House of Representatives website''
Minnesota Public Radio Votetracker: Rep. Thomas Huntley

Project Votesmart - Rep. Thomas Huntley Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Huntley, Thomas 1938 births Living people University of Minnesota College of Science and Engineering alumni Politicians from Duluth, Minnesota Democratic Party members of the Minnesota House of Representatives 21st-century members of the Minnesota Legislature