Jeff Ettinger

Ettinger was born in Pasadena, California. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree and Juris Doctor from the University of California, Los Angeles.[4]

Ettinger served as a law clerk to Judge Arthur Alarcón of the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit.[4] He has worked at Hormel since 1989, fulfilling roles such as senior corporate attorney (1989–1993), treasurer (1998–1999), and president of Jennie-O (1999–2003). He later worked as vice president and general counsel of Comar Marketing. He was a member of the American Meat Institute board of directors, the Grocery Manufacturers Association board of directors, and the Minnesota Business Partnership board of directors. He became Hormel's president, CEO, and chairman of the board in 2005 and retired as CEO on October 30, 2016.[5] He continued to serve as chairman of the board until retiring on November 20, 2017.[6][7]

Ettinger was the Democratic nominee for the 2022 Minnesota's 1st congressional district special election and for the regular election in November 2022.[8][9] Ettinger lost both elections to Brad Finstad.[10]

On May 8, 2023, Ettinger was selected as Interim President for the University of Minnesota system.[11]

Ettinger and his wife, LeeAnn, have four children.[12] They live in Austin, Minnesota.[13]

Ettinger is Catholic.[13]