Smith, Tina (1958-…), became a member of the United States Senate in 2018. She is a Democrat from Minnesota , one of the Midwestern States. Smith was appointed to fill the seat of Al Franken , who resigned. Prior to her appointment as senator, Smith had served as Minnesota’s lieutenant governor.
Tina Flint was born in Albuquerque, New Mexico, on March 4, 1958. She earned a bachelor’s degree in political science from Stanford University in 1980. In 1984, she received a master’s degree in business administration from the Tuck School of Business at Dartmouth College . She then moved to Minnesota, where she pursued a career in marketing. She also married Archie Smith, an investment manager.
Tina Smith began managing political campaigns in Minnesota starting in the 1990’s. From 2006 to 2010, she served as chief of staff for Minneapolis Mayor R. T. Rybak. The chief of staff manages the mayor’s staff and serves as a close adviser to the mayor. In 2010, she began advising Mark Dayton ‘s campaign for governor of Minnesota. Dayton, a former U.S. senator, won the election, and Smith became his chief of staff after he took office in 2011. In 2014, Smith became Dayton’s running mate as he successfully sought reelection. Smith was sworn in as the state’s lieutenant governor in 2015.
In November 2017, a Senate ethics panel opened an investigation into sexual misconduct allegations against Senator Franken. Franken resigned his Senate seat, and Dayton appointed Smith to fill Franken’s position. In November 2018, Smith won a special election to serve out the remainder of Franken’s term, scheduled to end in 2021.
