Bud Nornes

Larry B. "Bud" Nornes (born March 21, 1943) is a Minnesota politician and former member of the Minnesota House of Representatives. A member of the Republican Party of Minnesota, he represented District 8A, which includes most of Otter Tail County in west central Minnesota. He is the former owner of radio stations KJJK AM and KJJK FM based in Fergus Falls, having sold them in 1997.[1]

Nornes was first elected in 1996, and was reelected every two years until retiring in 2021. He is a former assistant majority whip.[2]

Nornes graduated from Fertile High School in Fertile, then went on to Brown Institute of Broadcasting in 1962 for training in Communications and Broadcasting. Nornes received a Disntinguished Alumni Award from Brown in 2011 and Fertile-Beltrami in 2014. He has been a broadcaster and radio station owner since 1962. He was a member of the Fergus Falls School Board from 1983 to 1996. He is a member of the Minnesota Broadcaster Association and the National Association of Broadcasters. He is also active in his community as a member of the Fergus Falls Chamber of Commerce, Ducks Unlimited, the Elks, the Kiwanis, Pheasants Forever, and the United Way.[2][1]

Nornes's great-grandfather, Ole Opdahl, also served as a Republican member of the Minnesota House from 1903 to 1907. A farmer in Mansfield Township, Opdahl represented the old District 9, which included Freeborn County.[3]