Rep. Keith Ellison took over as Minnesota's most liberal member of Congress in 2010, while Rep. Michele Bachmann solidified her position as most conservative in the delegation, according to annual voting-record rankings compiled by National Journal.
Ellison overtakes McCollum for "most liberal" in Minn. delegation
Rep. Keith Ellison was the 14th most liberal member of Congress.
By jeremyherb
February 28, 2011 at 9:47PM
Ellison was named 14th most liberal member of the House, a jump of 30 places from 2009 that catapulted him ahead of Rep. Betty McCollum, who was most liberal in last year's rankings.
In what might be the biggest surprise for Minnesota, defeated Rep. Jim Oberstar came in second at 37th most liberal. McCollum is 60th, followed by Walz at 166th and Peterson at 243rd, putting him on the conservative-side of the spectrum but not less liberal than any Republican.
In the Senate, Sen. Al Franken clocks in at 15th most liberal, and Sen. Amy Klobuchar is 38th — a notch up from 49th in 2009.
On the conservative side of the aisle, Bachmann moved up to 19th most conservative in this year's rankings. Rep. John Kline ranked 108th most conservative, and Rep. Erik Paulsen 144th.
Last year, Bachmann was at 28th, just four spots ahead of Rep. John Kline. But in 2010 Kline dropped nearly 100 places thanks to scoring less conservative on all three categories National Journal includes: economic, social and foreign votes.
You can see the full list for the House and Senate here.
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