Benson graduated from Eastern University in Saint Davids, Pennsylvania, earning his Bachelor of Arts in organizational management and, later, his Master of Business Administration He began his career with the United States. Postal Service in 1973, holding various management positions until his retirement in 2004.
He is also an assistant college professor for business administration and the Director of Human Resources at Crossroads College in Rochester. He served as Postmaster of Rochester from 1988 until 1995 and, subsequently, served as Postmaster of Cleveland, Ohio, and Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. In 1998, Benson was appointed the postal service"s district manager for an area of southeastern Pennsylvania consisting of 362 post offices and 3 processing plants with 6000 employees.
Benson came to Crossroads College in 2004.
In addition to his work as an assistant professor and Director of Human Resources, he served as the Director of Adult Studies and started the college"s Compass Adult Degree Completion Program. He also served as the college’s interim president from 2006 until 2008 during the process to fill the vacancy.
Benson was first elected to the House in 2010 and was re-elected in 2012. He did not run for re-election in 2014.
Benson announced on June 17, 2013 that he would run to represent Minnesota"s 1st congressional district in the United States House of Representatives.
Republican Party of Minnesota, Republican Party.
A member of the Republican Party of Minnesota, he represented District 26B, which includes portions of Olmsted County in the southeastern part of the state. From 1996-1998, he was a member of the National Joint Steering Committee for Quality of Work Life and Employee Involvement, a joint project between the National Rural Letter Carriers" Association and the United States. Postal Service, and was also a member of the 1994 National Contract Negotiations Team.
