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An old adage says that age is just a number, and here in Minnesota, that number is 41... which is the same number of years older former Minnesota Governor Mark Dayton is than his new wife.

In any other year, this story might have caused a few more of us to raise an eyebrow, but, hey-- this is 2020, so it fits right in, doesn't it? While the interwebs here in Minnesota were buzzing Sunday with grumbling about how the Vikings nearly lost to the Jaguars, they were also buzzing with news about former Governor Mark Dayton.

He posted a heartwarming note on his Facebook page Sunday announcing that he'd just gotten married-- and that his new bride is 41 years younger than he is. As the Governor said, the two met over 10 years ago when she was a staffer working on Hillary Clinton's campaign and then again when she worked on Dayton's 2010 campaign.

They recently reconnected, the post said, and just tied the knot. And, yeah, in case you're scoring at home: Dayton is 73, and his new wife, Ana, is 32. Which, if you do the math, is a difference of 41 years. ("She's 41 years my junior," the Governor said in the post.)

I know our age difference (I am 73; she is 32) will surprise many of you. The truth is, the feelings that developed between Ana and me, given our age difference, surprised us too, at first. But as we grew to know each other, we realized that the love binding us is far deeper and more meaningful than the years that separate us.

As BringMeTheNews notes, this is Dayton's third marriage-- he was previously married to Alida Messinger, and the couple had two sons, Eric and Andrew (who, I'm guessing are now themselves older than their dad's wife.)  Dayton's biography also notes he was married from 1996 to 1999 to Janice R. Haarstick.

In his post, Dayton went on to wish Minnesotans "...a most joyful holiday season. May the New Year bring to you, your loved ones, and our shared community health, happiness and, out of the dark difficulties of these hard past times, a brighter tomorrow," the post said.

Hey, age IS just a number, right? Congrats to the former Governor and his new wife! And while we're talking about marriages, keep scrolling to check out these celebrity couples who, unlike Governor Dayton, tried to keep their nuptials on the down low!

Dear Family and Friends,

I am delighted to reach out to you in these challenging times with some very happy news:...

Posted by Mark Dayton on Sunday, December 6, 2020

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