Thomas Moodie was born in Winona Minnesota and worked as a reporter and brakeman for the Northern Pacific Railroad before moving to North Dakota and reporting for the Bismarck Tribune. He edited and wrote for newspapers throughout the state and received the Democratic nomination for Governor in 1934. He beat Lydia Langer, and was inaugurated in January 1935 before it was discovered that he had voted in a 1932 municipal election in Minnesota. Not having lived in North Dakota for five consecutive years before the election, he was deemed ineligible to hold the governorship. He only served for five weeks. He later became an administrator for the North Dakota Federal Housing Administration.
