John Randolph Thune is an American politician serving as the senior United States senator from South Dakota, a seat he has held since 2005. Thune is in his fourth Senate term and is the Senate minority whip, a post he has held since 2021. A member of the Republican Party, Thune served three terms as the U.S. representative for South Dakota's at-large congressional district from 1997 to 2003.

The 117th United States Congress was a meeting of the legislative branch of the United States federal government, composed of the United States Senate and the United States House of Representatives. It convened in Washington, D.C., on January 3, 2021, during the final weeks of Donald Trump's presidency and the first two years of Joe Biden's presidency and ended on January 3, 2023.