[AllPolitics - States]


AllPolitics is presenting the freshmen of the 105th Congress every day between now and January. Here's who we've done so far:

SENATE
Alabama
Jeff Sessions (R)
Arkansas
Tim Hutchinson (R)
Colorado
Wayne Allard (R)
Georgia
Max Cleland (D)
Illinois
Richard Durbin (D)
Kansas
Sam Brownback (R)
Pat Roberts (R)
Louisiana
Mary Landrieu (D)
Maine
Susan Collins (R)
Nebraska
Chuck Hagel (R)
New Jersey
Robert Torricelli (D)
Oregon
Gordon Smith (R)
Rhode Island
Jack Reed (D)
South Dakota
Tim Johnson (D)
Wyoming
Mike Enzi (R)

HOUSE
Alabama
3-Bob Riley (R)
4-Robert Aderholt (R)
Arkansas
1-Marion Berry (D)
2-Victor F. Snyder (D)
3-Asa Hutchinson (R)
California
10-Ellen Tauscher (D)
22-Walter Holden Capps (D)
24-Brad Sherman (D)
27-James E. Rogan (R)
46-Loretta Sanchez (D)
Colorado
1-Diana DeGette (D)
4-Robert Schaffer (R)
Connecticut
5-James Maloney (D)
Florida
2-Allen Boyd (D)
11-Jim Davis (D)
19-Robert Wexler (D)
Iowa
3-Leonard Boswell (D)
Illinois
5-Rod Blagojevich (D)
7-Danny K. Davis (D)
20-John Shimkus (R)
Indiana
7-Edward Pease (R)
10-Julia Carson (D)
Kansas
1-Jerry Moran (R)
2-Jim Ryun (R)
3-Vince Snowbarger (R)
Kentucky
3-Anne Meagher Northup (R)
Louisiana
5-John Cooksey (R)
7-Chris John (D)
Massachusetts
3-James McGovern (D)
6-John Tierney (D)
10-William Delahunt (D)
Maine
1-Tom Allen (D)
Michigan
8-Debbie Stabenow (D)
15-Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick (D)
Mississippi
3-Charles "Chip" Pickering Jr. (R)
Missouri
7-Roy Blunt (R)
8-Jo Ann Emerson (I)
9-Kenny Hulshof (R)
Montana
At Large-Rick Hill (R)
New Hampshire
1-John E. Sununu (R)
New Jersey
8-William Pascrell Jr. (D)
9-Steven Rothman (D)
12-Mike Pappas (R)
New York
4-Carolyn McCarthy (D)
Nevada
2-Jim Gibbons (R)
North Carolina
2-Bob Etheridge (D)
4-David E. Price (D)
7-Mike McIntyre (D)
Ohio
6-Ted Strickland (D)
10-Dennis Kucinich (D)
Oklahoma
3-Wes Watkins (R)
Oregon
2-Bob Smith (R)
5-Darlene Hooley (D)
Pennsylvania
5-John Peterson (R)
16-Joseph R. Pitts (R)
Rhode Island
2-Robert Weygand (D)
South Dakota
At Large-John Thune (R)
Tennessee
1-Bill Jenkins (R)
9-Harold E. Ford Jr. (D)
Texas
1-Max Sandlin (D)
2-Jim Turner (D)
5-Pete Sessions (R)
12-Kay Granger (R)
14-Ron Paul (R)
15-Ruben Hinojosa (D)
16-Silvestre Reyes (D)
Utah
2-Merrill Cook (R)
3-Chris Cannon (R)
Virginia
5-Virgil H. Goode Jr. (D)
Washington
9-Adam Smith (D)
Wisconsin
3-Ron Kind (D)
8-Jay W. Johnson (D)
South Dakota - At Large

Representative-Elect
John Thune (R-S.D.)

Born: Jan. 7, 1961, Pierre, S.D.
Education: Biola U., B.S. 1983; U. of South Dakota, M.B.A. 1984.
Occupation: Municipal league executive; congressional aide.
Family: Wife, Kimberley; two children.
Religion: Protestant.
Political Career: No previous office.
Capitol Office: 506 Cannon Bldg. 20515; 225-2801.

By Congressional Quarterly

Thune fits the general profile of candidates that South Dakotans have chosen to send to Washington in recent years -- young and ambitious, yet experienced in government.

Thune doesn't plan to climb too far up the House seniority ladder, though. A supporter of term limits, he has pledged to serve no more than three terms.

One of only two members of the GOP Class of 1996 who picked up previously Democratic House seats outside the South, Thune was rewarded prior to the start of the 105th Congress by his classmates, who selected him to serve as their liaison to the House GOP leadership.

The seat, which Democrat Tim Johnson left to run successfully for the Senate, had been held by Democrats since South Dakota went down to a sole House seat in 1982. Thune picked up committee assignments allowing him to look out for the state's concerns: slots on the Transportation and Infrastructure and Agriculture committees.

Agriculture is South Dakota's leading industry and was one of the areas Thune used to demonstrate his political independence during the 1996 campaign. House Republican Conference Chairman John A. Boehner of Ohio traveled to the state to stump for him, but Thune was hardly the polite, unquestioning host. He publicly disagreed with remarks Boehner made at the South Dakota State Fair questioning whether diminished competition among meat packers had contributed to lower cattle prices, as many producers thought.

Thune also broke with Republican presidential nominee and former Kansas Sen. Bob Dole over taxes. He said that he could not support Dole'S15 percent tax cut plan until the federal budget was in balance. Thune did, however, sign a pledge not to increase income taxes. He supports a constitutional amendment to require a balanced federal budget.

He refused during a summer debate with Democratic nominee Rick Weiland to state whether he would vote to return Newt Gingrich, R- Ga., as Speaker. Distancing himself from party leaders helped Thune establish centrist credentials at home.

Weiland, a longtime aide to South Dakota's Democratic Sen. Tom Daschle, tried to appeal to traditional Democratic constituencies as a supporter of unions and rural development. Weiland was unable to seize the political center in this generally Republican state, having angered many even within his own party with an ad accusing his primary opponent of being disloyal for having made financial contributions to Republican candidates in the past.

Thune ran in the GOP primary as a supporter of many of the elements in the House Republicans' "Contract With America."

He defeated Lt. Gov. Carole Hillard, who ran more as a media candidate than the hard-stumping Thune but lacked the funds to take advantage of her initial advantage in name recognition. Her efforts were greatly hindered by the refusal of her boss, Republican Gov. William J. Janklow, to endorse her.

By contrast, Thune was able to tout the unqualified support of his own old boss and political mentor, former Sen. James Abdnor (1981-87).

Thune served as an Abdnor aide during the 99th Congress and followed Abdnor to Washington when President Ronald Reagan appointed the senator to run the Small Business Administration. Thune later held an appointment as deputy staff director of the Senate Small Business Committee.

A former executive director of the South Dakota GOP, Thune left his job as director of an association of local South Dakota governments to mount his House bid.

During the primary, Thune made an ethical misstep by failing to file a personal financial disclosure form, which he dismissed as an "oversight." Thune has pledged not to accept a pay raise or participate in the congressional pension system. He also says he will forgo publicly funded overseas trips.

© 1997, Congressional Quarterly Inc. All rights reserved.

Tennessee - 1st District

Representative-Elect
Bill Jenkins (R-Tenn.)

Born: Nov. 29, 1936, Detroit, Mich.
Education: Tennessee Technological U., B.S. 1960; B.A.; U. of Tennessee, J.D. 1961.
Occupation: Lawyer; farmer.
Family: Wife, Mary Kathryn; four children.
Religion: Baptist.
Political Career: Tenn. House, 1963-71, Speaker of the house, 1969-1971; candidate for governor, 1970; circuit court judge, 1990- 96.
Capitol Office: 1708 Longworth Bldg. 20515; 225-6356.

By Congressional Quarterly

After a hiatus of more than 25 years, Jenkins is beginning his legislative career anew, putting the lie to F. Scott Fitzgerald's notion that "there are no second acts in American lives."

Jenkins overcame a large field that vied to succeed retiring Republican James H. Quillen in 1996. He was rewarded with a pair of committee slots that were among the best granted to a freshman for the 105th Congress. Jenkins will serve on the Agriculture and Judiciary committees.

Jenkins spent six years as a circuit judge, resigning to make the run for Congress. Attorneys who practiced before his bench describe him as collegial, someone more apt to build consensus than to appear confrontational.

He appears likely to try to represent the district in much the same fashion that Quillen did for 17 terms, pledging to maintain the level of constituent service that made Quillen an unbeatable political force in East Tennessee.

A former member of the Tennessee Valley Authority board, Jenkins can be expected to follow Quillen's lead in resisting cuts to programs that benefit Appalachian communities. He lists balancing the budget as one of his top priorities but rarely offers remedies more specific than ferreting out waste, fraud and abuse.

Jenkins supports continued spending for a strong national defense. But he would like to see the federal bureaucracy in general trimmed down, arguing that the government imposes too much red tape and regulation.

Rumors of Quillen's retirement had proceeded the event for many years, and his 1996 announcement that he would be stepping down unleashed a lot of pent-up political ambition in the district. Eleven Republicans, as well as four Democrats, filed for the seat.

It had appeared that Quillen was grooming state Rep. Ralph Cole to succeed him, but Cole opted not to make a bid (reportedly because Quillen was not willing to stump hard for him). Quillen eventually endorsed state Rep. Ralph Yelton, a second cousin.

The prize worth having in this staunchly Republican district was the GOP nomination, and the top contenders all plied similar conservative lines--even some of the GOP hopefuls admitted there was not any discernible difference between them on the issues.

Jenkins, who raises beef cattle and burley tobacco, touted his status as the only farmer among the leading candidates, laying claim to being the race's only "dyed-in-the-wool, card-carrying bona fide hillbilly."

But each of the front-runners brought his own constituency to the battle. District Attorney General Al Schmutzer was the only top-tier candidate who hailed from the district's southern end, and his financial backers reflected the Knoxville area's growing influence over the district. State Sen. Jim Holcomb, a marriage and family therapist, sponsored the state's ban on same-sex marriages and had the backing of some Christian activists' support.

But although Schmutzer appeared to hold the lead on election night, in the end it was Jenkins, taking advantage of his many political contacts, who was able to eke out a win. He outpaced Holcomb by just 320 votes.

That narrow nomination was enough practically to guarantee Jenkins the seat, though. The district has not sent a Democrat to Congress in this century, and Jenkins needed to run only a low-key campaign to easily defeat Democratic real estate agent Kay C. Smith.

An advocate for balancing economic development with environmental protection, Jenkins saw his own political career off to a fast start during the 1960s. First elected to the Tennessee House in 1962, by age 33 he was Speaker, the only Republican in this century to hold the post. But he gave up the seat to run unsuccessfully for governor in 1970. The closest he got to the office was his service during the 1980s as conservation commissioner under Republican Gov. Lamar Alexander.

© 1997, Congressional Quarterly Inc. All rights reserved.


To purchase CQ's authoritative New Member Special Report, a comprehensive first look at the new 105th Congress, visit the CQ Mall.




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