Leif Erickson was a politician and jurist in the State of Montana

Montana

Montana is a state in the Western United States. The western third of Montana contains numerous mountain ranges. Smaller, "island ranges" are found in the central third of the state, for a total of 77 named ranges of the Rocky Mountains. This geographical fact is reflected in the state's name,...

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Biography

Erickson was born on July 29, 1906 to Oluf and Dora B. Erickson in Cashton, Wisconsin

Cashton, Wisconsin

Cashton is a village in Monroe County, Wisconsin, United States. The population was 1,005 at the 2000 census.-Geography:Cashton is located at ....

. On December 29, 1932 he married Huberta Burton Brown. He died on December 22, 1998 in Missoula, Montana

Missoula, Montana

Missoula is a city located in western Montana and is the county seat of Missoula County. The 2010 Census put the population of Missoula at 66,788 and the population of Missoula County at 109,299. Missoula is the principal city of the Missoula Metropolitan Area...

. Erickson was Lutheran.

Career

Erickson was District Attorney of Richland County, Montana

Richland County, Montana

-Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 9,667 people, 3,878 households, and 2,652 families residing in the county. The population density was 5 people per square mile . There were 4,557 housing units at an average density of 2 per square mile...

 from 1936 to 1938 and was a Justice of the Montana Supreme Court

Montana Supreme Court

The Montana Supreme Court is the highest court of the Montana state court system in the U.S. state of Montana. It is established and its powers defined by Article VII of the 1972 Montana Constitution...

 from 1938 to 1946. He was a delegate to the Democratic National Conventions in 1948

1948 Democratic National Convention

The 1948 Democratic National Convention was held at Convention Hall in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, from July 12 to July 14, and resulted in the nominations of incumbent Harry S Truman for President and U.S. Senator Alben W...

, 1952

1952 Democratic National Convention

The 1952 Democratic National Convention was held at the International Amphitheatre in Chicago, Illinois from July 21 to July 26, 1952, which was the same arena the Republicans had gathered in a few weeks earlier for their national convention...

, and 1956

1956 Democratic National Convention

The 1956 National Convention of the Democratic Party nominated former Governor Adlai Stevenson of Illinois for President and Senator Estes Kefauver of Tennessee for Vice President. It was held in the International Amphitheatre on the South Side of Chicago, Illinois August 13–17 1956. Unsuccessful...

. In 1944 he was an unsuccessful candidate for Governor of Montana, losing to incumbent Sam C. Ford

Sam C. Ford

Samuel Clarence Ford was an attorney and the 12th Governor of Montana.Ford was born on November 7, 1882 in Albany, Kentucky. He served as an Attorney General and a Supreme Court Justice in Montana....

, and in 1946 he was an unsuccessful candidate for a seat in the U.S. Senate from Montana, defeating longtime incumbent Burton Wheeler in the primary, but losing to Republican Zales Ecton

Zales Ecton

Zales Nelson Ecton was a rare Republican United States senator from Montana, having served from 1947 to 1953.Ecton was born in Weldon, Decatur County, Iowa. He moved with his family to Gallatin County, Montana, when he was nine years old...

in the general election. From 1956 to 1958 he was Chairman of the Montana Democratic Party and from 1962 to 1973 he was a Democratic National Committeeman.