Hoeven, John, 1957-

John Henry Hoeven III (/ˈhoʊvən/ HO-ven; born March 13, 1957) is an American banker and politician serving as the senior U.S. senator from North Dakota since 2011. A Republican, he served as the 31st governor of North Dakota from 2000 to 2010. In 2010, Hoeven was elected to the U.S. Senate, succeeding Senator Byron Dorgan, who chose not to seek reelection. Hoeven became North Dakota's senior senator in 2013 after Kent Conrad retired and was succeeded by Heidi Heitkamp, who was once Hoeven's opponent for the governor's office. Hoeven was reelected in 2016.

Before being elected governor, Hoeven was a 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 on the board of directors at First Western Bank & Trust and has an estimated net worth of $45 million, making him one of the wealthiest U.S. senators. He is the dean of North Dakota's congressional delegation.

Hoeven was born in Bismarck, North Dakota, the son of Patricia "Trish" (née Chapman) 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 is Dutch, Swedish, and English.

Hoeven studied at Dartmouth College, which his father also attended. Hoeven belonged to the Alpha Chi Alpha fraternity and graduated with honors with a BA in 1979. While there, he played on the men's golf team.

After Dartmouth, Hoeven attended the Kellogg School of Management at Northwestern University, graduating with an MBA in 1981.

From 1986 to 1993, Hoeven was executive vice president of First Western Bank & Trust, an institution his father bought in 1970. At one time, he owned 39% of the bank’s parent company, Westbrand, Inc. From 1993 to 2000, he was the president and CEO of the Bank of North Dakota, under governor Ed Schaefer.

Main article: 2000 North Dakota gubernatorial election
In 2000 Hoeven ran for governor of North Dakota as a Republican and won, defeating Democratic NPL nominee Heidi Heitkamp, 55% to 45%.