John Randolph Thune (born January 7, 1961) is the junior U.S. Senator from the state of South Dakota.

Born in Pierre, South Dakota, Thune graduated from Biola University in 1983, and received an MBA from the University of South Dakota in 1984.

A member of the Republican Party, Thune worked for U.S. Senators James Abdnor and Larry Pressler, as well as the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Under President Reagan, Thune worked at the Small Business Administration. From 1991 until 1993, Thune was the Railroad Director of South Dakota under an appointment by Governor George S. Mickelson.

In 1996, Thune was elected to South Dakota's seat in the United States House of Representatives; he won reelection in 1998 and 2000. Thune supported term limits and promised to serve no more than three terms in the House. As a result, he challenged Senator Tim Johnson, but lost to Johnson by 524 votes or 0.15%. Thune ran for the Senate again two years later; on November 2, 2004, Thune defeated Senate Minority Leader Tom Daschle with 51% of the vote in the 2004 senatorial elections.

External links

• Official Site
• John Thune for U.S. Senate
• Congressional biography
• 1996 CNN biography
• Blog examining 2004 Senate race