Ventura, Jesse (1951-…), was governor of Minnesota from 1999 to 2003. Ventura, a former professional wrestler, ran for office as a member of the Reform Party. When he was elected, he became the first Reform Party candidate in the United States to win a statewide office. In 2000, however, Ventura left the Reform Party. He said he was disappointed with the party and that, in the future, he would remain independent of any party affiliation. He did not run for reelection.
Ventura’s achievements as governor included reforming the state’s property tax system and getting construction started on Minnesota’s first light-rail line. The line would provide passenger service between downtown Minneapolis and the Mall of America in Bloomington. Ventura also helped promote state tourism and trade. But critics claimed he was unwilling to compromise or negotiate when he faced opposition to his plans.
Ventura was born James George Janos in Minneapolis on July 15, 1951. After graduating from high school in 1969, he joined the U.S. Navy and became a member of its Sea, Air, and Land (SEAL) underwater demolition team. He left active duty in 1973. From 1974 to 1975, he studied at North Hennepin Community College in the Minneapolis suburb of Brooklyn Park. During this time, he began weightlifting and body-building exercises. In 1975, he began a career as a professional wrestler under the name Jesse Ventura. He called himself “The Body” and became known for his showmanship.
In 1986, Ventura retired from wrestling because of health problems. From the mid-1980’s until he began his campaign for governor in the late 1990’s, he held a variety of jobs, including actor, sports commentator, and radio talk show host. During this period, he also won election as mayor of Brooklyn Park. Ventura decided to run for that office after he and his neighbors had protested unsuccessfully against city plans to build a storm sewer in a local wetland. Ventura served in the part-time post of mayor from 1991 to 1995.
Ventura attracted national attention with his campaign for the office of governor of Minnesota. He called himself the average person’s candidate and answered without hesitation most questions put to him. Even after he became governor, his activities sometimes drew national attention. In 2001, for example, he provided commentary for television broadcasts of a new professional football league called the Extreme Football League (XFL). Ventura hosted a talk show called “Jesse Ventura’s America” from October to December 2003 on the cable news channel MSNBC. He also served as a political commentator during the 2004 campaign season. Ventura has written three volumes of memoirs, I Ain’t Got Time to Bleed (1999), Do I Stand Alone? (2000), and Don’t Start the Revolution Without Me! (2008). He co-wrote the 2008 volume with Dick Russell. Russell and Ventura also worked together on two books exposing secret government activities, American Conspiracies: Lies, Lies, and More Dirty Lies That the Government Tells Us (2010) and 63 Documents the Government Doesn’t Want You to Read (2011). Since 2009, Ventura has hosted the cable television show “Conspiracy Theory with Jesse Ventura.”
