U.S. Senator Tim Johnson says "he is back" after suffering a life-threatening brain hemorrhage eight months ago.
Johnson made the comment before a crowd in his hometown of Sioux Falls, South Dakota on Tuesday.
During a television interview later Tuesday, Johnson said he plans to run for re-election in 2008 and that he expects to win.
In December, the South Dakota Democrat became disoriented during a conference call with reporters and was rushed to a hospital in Washington.
Over the past eight months, Johnson has had to learn how to walk again and how to cope with speech slowed by the incident. His speech therapist says the senator's comprehension is virtually intact.
Doctors say the senator has a condition that causes arteries and veins to grow abnormally large, become tangled and sometimes burst.
Johnson's illness threatened the Democrats' one-seat majority in the Senate won in the November elections. If he had died or resigned due to his condition, South Dakota's Republican governor might have appointed a Republican to fill out the senator's term.
