Richard Francis Kneip (January 7, 1933 – March 9, 1987) was an American diplomat and politician who served as the 25th governor of South Dakota from 1971 until 1978 and the 6th United States Ambassador to the Republic of Singapore.

He served in the U.S. Air Force and then owned a wholesale dairy equipment distributorship in Salem, South Dakota.

Taking office two days shy of his 38th birthday, Kneip is the youngest governor the state has ever elected.

Kneip appeared on the November 19, 1977, episode of Saturday Night Live as one of the five finalists in the show's "Anyone Can Host" contest, which was won by Miskel Spillman.

Some of Kneip's most significant achievements was preventing the closure of South Dakota State University's now-J.

[5] Although he had pondered yet another attempt at returning to public life, Kneip was diagnosed with cancer in early 1987.