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Concept
James Abdnor
Summary
Ellis James Abdnor (February 13, 1923 – May 16, 2012) was an American politician who served as a member of the United States Senate from South Dakota. He was also the 15th Administrator of the Small Business Administration under presidents Ronald Reagan and George H. W. Bush.
Abdnor had previously represented South Dakota's 2nd congressional district in the United States House of Representatives and served as the 30th Lieutenant Governor of South Dakota and a member of the South Dakota Senate.
Abdnor was born in Kennebec, South Dakota, on February 13, 1923, the son of Mary (née Wehby) and Samuel J. Abdnor. Abdnor served in the United States Army during World War II and then graduated from the University of Nebraska–Lincoln in 1945 where he became a member of the Sigma Chi fraternity.
He was a member of the South Dakota Senate from 1957 to 1969. A common, decent, plain spoken man," he was affectionately known as "the people's Senator." He was also described as a "nice-guy public servant" with a "down-home, warm and fuzzy way. His staff considered him to be a friend as well as an honorable mentor and public servant. Like his South Dakota congressional colleague James Abourezk, he was a second-generation Lebanese American and second U.S. Senator of Lebanese descent after Abourezk, as well.
From 1946 to 1948, James Abdnor worked as a teacher and coach. Abdnor was chief clerk of the South Dakota Legislature in the early-1950s. Abdnor was the 30th Lieutenant Governor of South Dakota from 1969 to 1971, and unsuccessfully sought the nomination for the House of Representatives in 1970.
In 1972, he was elected to the House of Representatives as a Republican.
Abdnor ran in the 1980 election against three-term incumbent and 1972 Democratic presidential nominee George McGovern for the United States Senate. Abdnor claimed McGovern was out of touch with the state and unseated him by a large margin. During his term as a senator, Abdnor served on the Appropriations Committee and chaired three subcommittees, including the Environment and Public Works Subcommittee.
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