John Henry Hoeven III is an American banker and politician serving as the senior U.S. Senator from North Dakota since 2011. A Republican, he served as the 31stGovernor of North Dakota from 2000 to 2010. Hoeven was elected in 2010 to the U.S. Senate, succeeding Senator Byron Dorgan, who chose not to seek reelection. Hoeven became the senior Senator in 2013 after Kent Conrad retired and was replaced by Democrat Heidi Heitkamp, who was once Hoeven's opponent for the Governor's office. Hoeven was reelected in 2016. Prior to his election to the Governor's office, Hoeven was a North Dakota banker who served in numerous executive roles at various banks, most notably as President of the nation's only state-owned bank, the Bank of North Dakota, from 1993 to 2000. He is positioned on the Board of Directors at First Western Bank & Trust, an institution his late father helped found, and has an estimated net worth of around $45 million, making him one of the wealthiest U.S. Senators.
Early life
Hoeven was born in Bismarck, North Dakota, the son of Patricia "Trish" and John Henry "Jack" Hoeven, Jr. His father owned a bank in Minot, North Dakota, where he worked as the president and chairman. Hoeven's ancestry includes Dutch, He studied at Dartmouth College, which his father also attended. Hoeven belonged to the Alpha Chi Alpha fraternity and graduated with honors. After graduating with an MBA from the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, Hoeven managed the trust department at his father's bank. From 1993 to 2000, he was the president and CEO of the state-owned Bank of North Dakota.
North Dakota Governor
2000
He sought the office of the Governor of North Dakota as a Republican in 2000, and he was elected, defeating Democratic NPL nominee Heidi Heitkamp by a margin of 55 to 45 percent.
2004
In 2004, when up for re-election, Hoeven faced Democratic-NPL challenger Joe Satrom. Hoeven won re-election by a wide margin of 71 to 28 percent.
2008
On September 25, 2007, Hoeven's deputy press secretary, Don Larson, announced that he would be taking a leave of absence from his job to manage the governor's re-election campaign. Another Hoeven staff member, Don Canton, said this was not a formal re-election announcement, but one would be coming later in the fall. On November 13, Governor Hoeven made his formal announcement and campaign kickoff with stops in Fargo, Grand Forks, Bismarck and Minot. On November 4, 2008 Hoeven won a resounding victory carrying 74% of the vote over his Democratic-NPL opponent Tim Mathern with 24% of the vote. This is the first time in North Dakota's history that any governor has won three four-year terms in office, though the record for serving is still maintained by Gov. Bill Guy who served 12 years.
Tenure
Hoeven's governorship included the expansion and diversification of the state's economy, which led to a 49.5 percent increase in the state's real gross domestic product. Beginning in 2000, he directed the development of a multi-resource energy program for the state with incentives in each energy sector, leading the state in becoming one of the largest energy producing and exporting states in the country. North Dakota has gained nearly 40,000 new jobs since he took office. The state's wages and personal incomes continue to grow faster than the national average. In the past few years, the state led the nation in export growth. In late 2006, the state's reserve rose past $600 million, and now is over $700 million. As of December 2009, Hoeven was the most popular governor in the nation. His approval rating stood at 87 percent with only 10 percent disapproving. In January 2007, Hoeven became the nation's most senior governor, having been inaugurated on December 15, 2000, as established by the North Dakota Constitution.
U.S. Senate
On January 11, 2010, Hoeven announced he would run in the 2010 North Dakota Senate election for the seat being vacated by Senator Byron Dorgan, Hoeven defeated Democratic-NPL challenger Tracy Potter 76.08% to 22.17%. making him the first Republican Senator to represent North Dakota since 1987. Since 2013, Hoeven has been the dean—the most senior member—of North Dakota's congressional delegation. As of 2018 Hoeven was listed as one of the seven wealthiest senators in the United States Senate.
Hoeven briefly identified himself as a member of the Democratic-NPL Party before becoming active in the Republican Party as a District Chair and volunteer. Hoeven has walked a conservative line as a politician on some issues and a moderate one on others including increasing education funding, ethics reform, compensation for teachers, as well as increased funding on infrastructure.
Crime
Hoeven supports decreasing access to parole for offenders. He believes that drug control policy should be a state and not a federal issue.
Hoeven believes that alternative fuels are a long-term solution but that increased oil drilling is required in the short term. Hoeven has been a vocal advocate for the Keystone Pipeline, arguing that it has never leaked and that environmental risks have been exaggerated. The Keystone Pipeline has leaked twice, once in 2010 and, after making that argument, again in 2016. In 2015, Hoeven submitted an amendment asserting that climate change is real and that humans are contributing to it but also that the Keystone Pipeline would not contribute to climate change. His League of Conservation Voters score was 7% for 2018.
Gun rights
Hoeven consistently votes for pro-gun legislation and therefore has earned an "A+" rating from the National Rifle Association. The NRA has endorsed Hoeven multiple times, including during his run for governor in 2008 and senate in 2010. In June 2016, Hoeven voted in the senate on four gun control proposals that were developed as a result of the Orlando nightclub shooting. Hoeven voted in favor of senator Chuck Grassley's expansion of background checks and to provide funding to research the cause of mass shootings and senator John Cornyn's 72-hour wait period for purchases of guns by individuals on the terrorist watch list. Hoeven voted against senator Chris Murphy's proposal to require background checks for every gun sale, including online sales and at gun shows. He also voted against senator Dianne Feinstein's proposal to ban anyone from the terrorist watchlist from purchasing a gun. Hoeven voted against the latter bill due to lack of "judicial oversight or due process" in the proposal.
In April 2017, Hoeven co-sponsored the Israel Anti-Boycott Act, which would make it a federal crime for Americans to encourage or participate in boycotts against Israel and Israeli settlements in the West Bank if protesting actions by the Israeli government.
Health care
He believes that public health care should be provided only to the elderly and children.
Hoeven supports investment tax credits for farm investments.
Women's health
He is anti-abortion, opposing abortion except for cases of rape, incest, or threat to the mother's life. He opposes government funding for elective abortions in accordance with the Hyde Amendment. Hoeven voted for reauthorization of the Violence Against Women Act in 2012.
