Frank Lautenberg | |
|---|---|
| In office January 3, &#;– June 3, | |
| Preceded by | Robert Torricelli |
| Succeeded by | Jeffrey Chiesa |
| In office December 27, &#;– January 3, | |
| Preceded by | Nicholas F. Brady |
| Succeeded by | Jon Corzine |
| Born | Frank Raleigh Lautenberg ()January 23, Paterson, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Died | June 3, () (aged&#;89)[1] New York City, New York, U.S. |
| Resting place | Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia, U.S. |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Lois Levenson (divorced) Bonnie Englebardt (–; his death) |
| Children | Ellen Nan Lisa Joshua |
| Alma mater | Columbia University |
| Signature | |
| Allegiance | &#;United States |
| Branch/service | United States Army |
| Years&#;of service | – |
| Rank | Technician Fifth Grade[2] |
| Unit | th Signal Corps Service Battalion |
Frank Raleigh Lautenberg (January 23, &#; June 3, ) was an American Senior Senator of the state of New Jersey.[3] He first served in the United States Senate from to ; after a brief retirement, he was re-elected to the Senate and served from until his death in At age 89, Lautenberg was the oldest senator and the last serving veteran of World War II to remain a senator (after the death of Daniel Inouye and Ted Stevens,and[4]Daniel Akaka left office). Lautenberg was the oldest serving Senator.[5]
Lautenberg was born on January 23, in Paterson, New Jersey to Jewish-Polish-Russian parents.[6] After graduating from Nutley High School in , Lautenberg served overseas in the United States Army Signal Corps during World War II from to [7] Then, financed by the GI Bill, he attended and graduated from Columbia Business School in with a degree in economics. He was president and chairman of the board of Automatic Data Processing (ADP) for years after joining the company soon after it started.
Lautenberg was elected as Senator from New Jersey in and Following his second election, Lautenberg became a member of the President's Commission on Aviation Security and Terrorism (PCAST), which was set up in September to review and report on aviation security policy in light of the sabotage of Pan Am Flight on December 21, [8]
Lautenberg was again re-elected in the United States Senate elections of , beating Republican New Jersey State Assembly Speaker Chuck Haytaian by 50% to 47%.[9] Lautenberg helped pass laws that allowed no smoking on airplanes and to raise the drinking age to [10]
He announced his retirement in , but denied it was because he thought he would lose to Whitman or Kean, saying that he had been vulnerable in previous elections and "Mr. Vulnerable always wins". His fellow Democrat and businessman, Jon Corzine, was elected to replace him. In , Lautenberg decided to run again for Senator in He won the election.
In February , Lautenberg announced his intention to run for re-election in United States Senate elections, , saying that deciding not to run for re-election in "was among the worst decisions of his life."[11] Lautenberg formally announced his candidacy on March 31, He defeated Republican Dick Zimmer that November by 52% to 46%.
On February 14, , Lautenberg announced he would not seek re-election.[12] In the press conference, Lautenberg joked, "is it too late to change my mind?" and joked that he would pray "something goes wrong" so he could be called on to run again.
Lautenberg was married to Lois Levenson until they divorced 31 years after their marriage. He was married to Bonnie Englebardt from until his death in He had four children with Levenson. In , Lautenberg's wealth was estimated to be between $55 million and $ million, making him the fifth-wealthiest Senator.[1]
In February , Lautenberg was treated for stomach cancer.[13] During that same week, Lautenberg suffered from non-serious injuries from a fall he had.[13] June , it was announced that Lautenberg had gone under chemotherapy for a curable case of lymphoma.[14] Lautenberg later made a full recovery.
Lautenberg died on June 3, in Manhattan, New York from pneumonia, aged [1][15] In the interim, the current governor, Chris Christie, appointed a Republican, which changed the party balance in the Senate by one.[16] He was buried at Arlington National Cemetery, Arlington, Virginia on June 7, [17]
On June 4, , Governor Chris Christie announced that a special election to fill the current Senate seat will be held on October 16, [18] A special primary will be held on August 13, [19] It has been estimated that the two additional elections will cost the state approximately $20 million. Christie also stated he would soon appoint a Republican to fill the seat until the elected replacement takes office.[19] Republican politician Jeffrey Chiesa was chosen to be Lautenberg's acting successor. Chiesa was later chosen to be Lautenberg's official successor in October