John McCain is a person.
John Sidney McCain III ( born August 29 , 1936 ) is an American politician who currently serves as the senior United States Senator from Arizona . He was the Republican nominee for the 2008 U.S. presidential election . McCain ran for the Republican nomination in 2000 but lost a heated primary season contest to George W. Bush of Texas . He secured the nomination in 2008 after coming back from early reversals , but was defeated by Democratic candidate Barack Obama in the general election , losing by a 365 -- 173 electoral college margin and by 53 -- 46 % in the popular vote . By 2013 , however , he had become a key figure in the Senate for negotiating deals on certain issues in an otherwise partisan environment .