Sandy Keith

Alexander MacDonald Keith
Chief Justice of the
Minnesota Supreme Court
In office
December 1, 1990  January 29, 1998
Appointed by Rudy Perpich
Preceded by Peter S. Popovich
Succeeded by Kathleen A. Blatz
Associate Justice of the
Minnesota Supreme Court
In office
February 1, 1989  December 1, 1990
Appointed by Rudy Perpich
37th Lieutenant Governor of Minnesota
In office
January 8, 1963  January 2, 1967
Governor Karl Rolvaag
Preceded by Karl Rolvaag
Succeeded by James B. Goetz
Member of the Minnesota Senate
from the 4th district
In office
January 6, 1959  January 7, 1963
Preceded by Walter Burdick
Succeeded by Harold G. Krieger
Personal details
Born (1928-11-22) November 22, 1928
Rochester, Minnesota
Nationality American
Political party Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party
Spouse(s) Marion E. Sanford
Alma mater Amherst College
Yale Law School

Alexander MacDonald "Sandy" Keith (born November 22, 1928) is a Minnesota lawyer who served as a state senator, the 37th Lieutenant Governor, and an associate justice and chief justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court.

Early life

Sandy Keith was born in Rochester, Minnesota to Norman M. Keith and Edna (Alexander) Keith. His father was a physician who practiced medicine at the Mayo Clinic.

He married Marion E. Sanford April 29, 1955.

Education and military service

Keith graduated magna cum laude from Amherst College in 1950, and from Yale Law School in 1953. He then served in the United States Marine Corps during the Korean War.

Career

After returning to his hometown of Rochester, Minnesota, Keith took a job as counsel with the Mayo Clinic, where he worked with future U.S. Supreme Court Justice, Harry Blackmun.

In 1959, he was elected to the Minnesota State Senate as a member of the Democratic-Farmer-Labor Party (DFL). During his tenure as a State Senator, Keith served as a delegate to the 1960 Democratic National Convention. He was Lieutenant Governor of Minnesota under Governor Karl Rolvaag from 1963 until 1967. He challenged Rolvaag for the nomination to be the DFL's candidate for governor in the 1966 general election, but was defeated by Rolvaag in the primary election.

Judicial service

In 1989, Keith began serving as a justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court. He became Chief Justice in 1990 and served in that capacity until 1998. While serving as Chief Justice (having been appointed to the position by (then) Governor Rudy Perpich), Keith handed down a ruling that allowed Arne Carlson onto the ballot as the Republican candidate for governor after Jon Grunseth, the previously endorsed candidate, stepped out of the race for cavorting in a swimming pool with minor girls. Carlson won the election, with Perpich and others blaming Keith for the loss.

Return to private sector

After retiring from the Minnesota Supreme Court, Keith returned to private practice at Dunlap & Seeger in Rochester where he concentrates on mediating civil and family law disputes. He self-identifies as a Democrat, but has served on the board for the conservative Center of the American Experiment and is outspoken in his endorsement of Republican candidates and policies.

References

    Political offices
    Preceded by
    Karl Rolvaag
    Lieutenant Governor of Minnesota
    1963–1967
    Succeeded by
    James B. Goetz
    Legal offices
    Preceded by
    Peter S. Popovich
    Chief Justice of the Minnesota Supreme Court
    1990–1998
    Succeeded by
    Kathleen A. Blatz
    Party political offices
    Preceded by
    Karl Rolvaag
    Endorsed Gubernatorial Candidate,
    Minnesota DFL State Convention

    1966
    Succeeded by
    Wendell Anderson
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