Thomas Adolph Loftus (born April 24, 1945) is a retired American diplomat, educator, and Democratic politician from Dane County, Wisconsin.

He was United States Ambassador to Norway from 1993 through 1997, during the presidency of Bill Clinton, served as an advisor and representative of the World Health Organization, and most recently was a member of the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents, retiring in 2011.

He served in the United States Army for two years in the midst of the Vietnam War before returning to his education in Wisconsin.

[2] Later that year, incumbent state representative David D. O'Malley announced he would not run for another term in the Assembly, and Loftus decided to enter the race to succeed him.

He challenged R. Michael Ferrall for his role as assistant majority leader before the start of the 1979 session, but lost that election.

Later in that term, Loftus made a bid for majority leader when James W. Wahner resigned, but he again fell short in the early rounds of the caucus vote.

[4] Loftus finally won a leadership position after the 1980 general election, defeating Thomas A. Hauke to become Assembly majority leader.

[19][20] In 2005, Loftus was appointed to the University of Wisconsin Board of Regents by governor Jim Doyle, and later that year he became president of WisconsinEye.

[24][25] After Tommy Thompson was chosen interim president of the University of Wisconsin System, in 2020, he selected Loftus as an advisor to help him prepare for the job.