Rep. Westrom to fill in today as House speaker, the first blind legislator to do so
Minnesota House officials say Rep. Torrey Westrom, a Republican from Elbow Lake, will fill in as speaker pro tempore today, making him the first blind legislator to serve as House speaker in Minnesota history, and possibly anywhere in the country.
House officials say a check with the National Conference of State Legislatures found no other blind state representative has ever served as speaker.
Westrom lost his sight in an accident when he was 14; he's got a law degree from William Mitchell, and was elected to the House in 1996 at age 23, becoming the state's first blind state representative. Now in his eighth term, he's chair of the Civil Law Committee.
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