Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party

Minnesota's Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party (DFL) was officially formed on April 15, 1944, the result of a merger of the existing Democratic Party and the Farmer-Labor Party. Although the two entities had competed vigorously throughout their pasts, they had been brought into closer harmony through their mutual support of New Deal programs, through Popular Front collaborations during World War II, and through a realistic acceptance of the fact that they were effectively splitting the state's liberal vote, and thereby aiding in the election of Republican Party candidates for state and federal offices. The merged party became the Minnesota arm of the national Democratic Party.

Leading the merger effort were Elmer Kelm, the head of the Minnesota Democratic Party; Elmer Benson, effectively the head of the Farmer-Labor Party by virtue of his leadership of its dominant left-wing faction; and rising star Hubert H. Humphrey, who chaired the Fusion Committee that accomplished the union and then went on to chair its first state convention. After considerable infighting over the next few years, Humphrey successfully led the anti-communist wing of the DFL into a position of party dominance, effectively excluding the Popular Front faction from 1948 onward.

A strong showing in the 1948 general election encouraged party leaders to start building a strong and stable state organization. Orville Freeman was elected state committee chairman, and strove to create an effective precinct, ward, and county organization for the young party. During this period the Young Democratic-Farmer-Labor Clubs (YDFL) grew rapidly as well, becoming a proving ground for many future party leaders. With a robust party structure in place the DFL steadily increased its share of elected officials in state and federal offices through the 1950s and 1960s. This growth declined during the latter 1960s when internecine conflict regarding the Rolvaag gubernatorial administration and the War in Vietnam resulted in a decline in the party organization's administrative and polling effectiveness. This trend was reversed in the early 1970s as new leadership emerged and reclaimed much of the lost political ground. The electoral success of the party has ebbed and flowed since the late 1970s, in part due to the DFL's adoption of proportional voting as part of the national Democratic Party reforms initiated in the early 1970s, which fueled the emergence and power of single-issue splinter groups within the party structure.

The State Central Committee (SCC) and the State Executive Committee (EC) are the governing DFL bodies between party conventions. The SCC's 544 members (502 actual votes) are elected every two years at county unit conventions. Party officers, which lead the SCC and EC, are elected every two years at state conventions. Leaders of state senate and house DFL caucuses are ex officio members of the EC. There are also central committees and executive committees established at the county unit and congressional district levels.

From the guide to the State Central Committee records., 1943-1998 (bulk 1955-1972)., (Minnesota Historical Society)