Nils Pederson Haugen (March 9, 1849 – April 23, 1931) was a Norwegian American immigrant, lawyer, and politician.

[2] Born in Modum, Buskerud, Norway, Haugen immigrated to the United States in 1854 with his parents.

[3] Haugen's former home, the William T. Leitch House, is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

[4] The house was also home to Madison, Wisconsin, mayors William T. Leitch and Moses Ransom Doyon.

Haugen wed the former Ingeborg "Belle" Rasmussen in Saint Croix county, Wisconsin in 1875.

Their call for reform gained more support after the Panic of 1893 shook up the economic, class, and ethnic assumptions held by many Americans.

Nils Haugen sought the party nomination for governor in 1894 and Robert La Follette followed in 1896 and 1898.