ST. CLOUD, Minn. — A central Minnesota state senator, Jerry Relph, died almost a month to the day after developing COVID-19 symptoms. He was 74. Relph, a Republican, was the vice chair of the Senate Family Care and Aging Committee, which dealt with issues important issue to him. He was lame duck, his term ending in January with his seat being taken by Democrat Aric Putnam, who won by 315 votes. Relph paid for a recount, which gave him three additional votes and Putnam two. Relph had not conceded formally before he died. In the Senate Relph had opposed a paid family sick leave proposal. He said it would be a “statewide social security system.” He also opposed universal preschool, calling it a “step to creating cradle to grave control by the government.” Last winter he expressed concern over that the state was inadequately prepared for a pending COVID pandemic. He was the lead author of a bill in March to earmark nearly $2.1 million to fight the pandemic. Relph supported studies on connecting St. Cloud and the Cities by Northstar commuter trains.
Relph profile
After graduating from Carleton College, Relph enlisted in the Marines and spent 14 months in Vietnam. Later as a student at William Mitchel Law School, he worked for 3M in personnel. He later joined a small St. Charles law firm in Winona County, specializing in municipal, real estate, business, and tax law. In 1984 he moved to St. Cloud to join the Hughes law firm, specializing in municipal and zoning law. He later joined the GPS fishing map company LakeMaster. In his first run for public office in 2016, Relph defeated Dan Wolgamott by141 votes. Relph ran for reelection in 2020 but lost to Aric Putnam by 317 votes.