Thomas Lewis Fiegen (born October 2, 1958) is an American attorney and Democratic Party politician. He served in the

Iowa Iowa ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the upper Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west; Wisconsin to the northeast, Ill ...

State Senate In the United States, the state legislature is the legislative branch in each of the 50 U.S. states. A legislature generally performs state duties for a state in the same way that the United States Congress performs national duties at ...

from 2001 to 2003. He sought the Democratic nomination in the 2010 U.S. Senate election in Iowa but came in third against Roxanne Conlin who won the primary, with Bob Krause coming in second. Fiegen again sought the Democratic nomination in the 2016 U.S. Senate election in Iowa, repeating his third-place showing. Fiegen endorsed

Bernie Sanders Bernard Sanders (born September8, 1941) is an American politician and activist who is the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States Senate, United States senator from the state of Vermont. He is the longest-serving independ ...

for President prior to Sanders' endorsement of fellow candidate

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, lawyer and diplomat. She was the 67th United States secretary of state in the administration of Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, a U.S. senator represent ...

Early life and education

Fiegen was reared on a family farm in southeastern

South Dakota South Dakota (; Sioux language, Sioux: , ) is a U.S. state, state in the West North Central states, North Central region of the United States. It is also part of the Great Plains. South Dakota is named after the Dakota people, Dakota Sioux ...

as the eldest of eleven children. He worked on the family farm, raising cattle and hogs, until he graduated from high school; he then began taking classes at

South Dakota State University South Dakota State University (SDSU or SD State) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Brookings, South Dakota, United States. Founded in 1881, it is the state's largest university and is the sec ...

while farming and launching a grain bin construction business with his brothers. In 1979, rather than continuing at SDSU, Fiegen went to work for the National Farmers Organization in West Fargo,

North Dakota North Dakota ( ) is a U.S. state in the Upper Midwest, named after the indigenous Dakota people, Dakota and Sioux peoples. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Saskatchewan and Manitoba to the north and by the U.S. states of Minneso ...

. In 1980, he briefly worked for a South Dakota ethanol fuels company before returning to the NFO to work in grain merchandising. He also worked as an apprentice electrician before returning to collegiate study. Fiegen graduated from

Kansas State University Kansas State University (KSU, Kansas State, or K-State) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university with its main campus in Manhattan, Kansas, United States. It was opened as the state's land-grant coll ...

in 1984, majoring in speech and agricultural economics. He subsequently earned a

Master of Arts A Master of Arts ( or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA or AM) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Those admitted to the degree have ...

degree in economics and a J.D. degree, both from the

University of Iowa The University of Iowa (U of I, UIowa, or Iowa) is a public university, public research university in Iowa City, Iowa, United States. Founded in 1847, it is the oldest and largest university in the state. The University of Iowa is organized int ...

Career

He is a bankruptcy lawyer specializing in farms and small businesses; he has operated his own legal practice since 1996.

Family

Fiegen has four grown children, Maureen (33), Kathryn (31), Paul (28), and Theresa (25). All four of his children attended Iowa State University, and all but Maureen remain in Iowa.

References

External links

Campaign website
Living people Iowa lawyers Democratic Party Iowa state senators South Dakota State University alumni Kansas State University alumni University of Iowa alumni University of Iowa College of Law alumni People from Mitchell, South Dakota People from Cedar County, Iowa 1958 births 21st-century members of the Iowa General Assembly {{Iowa-politician-stub