Bob Dole

Bob Dole, born in 1923, American politician and United States senator (1969-1996). He was born in Russell, Kansas, and educated at the University of Kansas and Washburn University of Topeka. Dole left college to join the military in World War II (1939-1945). He was severely wounded in Italy and left the military with a handicapped right arm. Dole returned to graduate from college and law school magna cum laude. In 1950 Dole was elected as a Republican representative to the Kansas state legislature. His two-year term was followed by four two-year terms as the prosecuting attorney of Russell County. In 1960 he won a seat as a Kansas representative to the Congress of the United States, serving from 1961 to 1969. During this time he opposed many of the liberal spending policies of the Kennedy and Johnson administrations, although he supported federal aid to the handicapped and to agriculture.

Dole ran on the Republican ticket for U.S. senator in 1968 and won easily. His aggressive partisan support of President Richard Nixon earned him the chairmanship of the Republican National Committee in 1971. By early 1973, however, he was at odds with Nixon’s staff, and he resigned from the chairmanship. As a senator, Dole sometimes deviated from his strict conservatism, especially with his support of government aid to feed the hungry and his consistent backing of civil rights legislation. He married Elizabeth Hanford, who was then a member of the Federal Trade Commission, in 1975.

In 1976 President Gerald Ford asked Dole to be his vice-presidential running mate. The team was narrowly defeated, and Dole’s assertive, acerbic campaign style caused unfavorable commentary that led him to cultivate a softer image. After an unsuccessful bid for the presidential nomination in 1980, he was elected to a third term as senator. He took over as the Senate majority leader in 1985, becoming minority leader in 1987 when the Republicans lost control of the Senate. Dole made another bid for his party’s nomination to the presidency in 1988 but was defeated by George Bush. He was reelected as senator in 1992 and continued as minority leader of the Senate. In 1995, after the Republicans gained control of the Senate, Dole again was chosen as majority leader. In February 1995 Dole announced his intention to run for president in 1996. Dole resigned his Senate seat in June 1996 to devote his time exclusively to his presidential campaign. He was defeated, however, by incumbent president Bill Clinton.