John McCain works in politics.
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 . He retired from the Navy as a captain in 1981 and moved to Arizona , where he entered politics . He was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 1986 , winning re-election easily five times , most recently in 2016 . McCain ran for the Republican nomination in 2000 but lost a heated primary season contest to George W. Bush of Texas .