Marty Seifert was raised on a small family farm near Clements, Minnesota. After graduating from Southwest Minnesota State University he became a high school teacher and a university admissions counselor. He served seven terms in the Minnesota House of Representatives, three years as House Minority Leader, and was a candidate for governor in 2010 and 2014. As executive director of the Avera Marshall Foundation, he played a key role raising millions of dollars to build and operate a new cancer treatment facility. Since 2015, he's worked in government relations with Flaherty & Hood, P.A. Seifert is active in his Catholic church and a volunteer counselor with the American Legion Boys State Program. He holds memberships in the Lyon County Historical Society, Sons of the American Legion, SMSU Alumni Association, and Shades of the Past Car Club.He dabbles in real estate, politics, and travel. Seifert lives in Marshall, Minnesota with his wife, Traci, and children, Brittany and Braxton.