Biography
Karl Olson is the Republican candidate for Minnesota House of Representatives District 46A in the November 3, 2026 general election, running against Democratic incumbent Larry Kraft.[1][2] In a Ballotpedia survey, he said he is a retired Foreign Service officer who moved to St. Louis Park in 2021.[3]
Karl Olson earned a bachelor's degree from Columbia University in 1982, a graduate degree from Georgetown University in 1992, and a graduate degree from the Command and General Staff College at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas, in 2002.[2] His career experience includes working as a federal employee.[2] In his survey responses, Olson said he grew up in the Washington, D.C., area, is retired from the Foreign Service, and moved to Minnesota in 2021 after his parents returned to the state in 2018.[3]
Olson listed accountability for fraud and government management among his campaign messages and named elections and voting as a policy area, proposing that unopposed candidates have to run against "None of the Above."[3] He listed endorsements from the Minnesota Senate District 46 Republicans and the Minnesota Log Cabin Republicans.[3]
- 1.Minnesota House of Representatives elections, 2026 - Ballotpedia · Ballotpedia Reference
- 2.Karl Olson - Ballotpedia · Ballotpedia Reference
- 3.Karl Olson - Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey responses (2026) · Ballotpedia Candidate's own words
Researched from the cited sources on 2026-10-21. Not yet independently fact-checked.
Minnesota House District 46A
Karl Olson is on the Nov 3, 2026 ballot for Minnesota House District 46A as R. Not researched in depth — candidate list only.
