- Vice President under Jimmy Carter 1977-1981;

- was a supporter of President Johnson's foreign policy in 1966, but later called that support his biggest mistake;

- By 1969, he was supporting legislation to curtail the war--probably the main reason for inclusion in the List.

- Neither the NY Times nor the Washington Post mentioned the List in his obituary, but both obituaries noted that he did not like to boast.

- was considered a possible contender for the presidency in 1976, but did not run;

- generally credited with strengthening the role of the vice president, starting with a strong showing in the first-ever vice presidential campaign debate with Bob Dole;

- memorably used the allusion to the Wendy's television commercial, "Where's the beef?" countering Gary Hart in the Democratic nomination debates;

- Just two terms earlier, fellow Minnesotan Hubert Humphrey compared the vice presidency to "being naked in the middle of a blizzard with no one to even offer you a match to keep you warm."

- He declined McGovern's offer to be his running mate in 1972.

- Democratic presidential candidate in 1984, winning only Minnesota and Washington, D.C.

- His campaign was very liberal by 1984 standards, supporting a nuclear freeze and the Equal Rights Amendment--ideas that became more mainstream during his lifetime.

- chose Geraldine Ferraro as running mate--the first time a woman was on a major party ticket;

- may have lost the presidential campaign at his acceptance speech with his unfortunate honesty and foresight: "Let's tell the truth. It must be done. It must be done. Mr. Reagan will raise taxes and so will I. He won't tell you. I just did."

- Later presidential candidates remembered this lesson and have carefully avoided both foresight and honesty.

- appointed as U.S. senator from Minnesota when Hubert Humphrey resigned to be vice president in 1964;

- He had been attorney general in Minnesota, and was the youngest AG in the US in 1960.

- was influential as a "friend of the court" in the 1963 Supreme Court decision, Gideon v. Wainwright, that affirmed that the Sixth Amendment guarantees every criminal defendant in a felony trial the right to a lawyer;

- served in the Army during the Korean War;

- first vice president to live at Number One Observatory Circle--the official home of the vice president;

- Ambassador to Japan 1992-1996;

- The Mondale award, created 1997 by the Japan America Society of Minnesota, recognizes outstanding contributions to the building of understanding, cooperation and respect between the people of Japan and Minnesota.

- replaced the late Paul Wellstone in October 2002 in the Senate campaign, but lost.

-Wrote several books: "The Accountability of Power: Toward a Responsible Presidency" (1976), "Crisis and Opportunity in a Changing Japan" (1999), "Twelve Years and Thirteen Days: Remembering Paul and Sheila Wellstone" (co-written, 2003), and "Good Fight: A Life in Liberal Politics" (memoir, 2010).

- as a lecturer at the University of Minnesota, co-taught the course, "Great Debates of Our Time: U.S. Policy and Politics," at the Humphrey School of Public Affairs until 2013.