Joseph Lieberman, a former Connecticut senator and vice presidential nominee, died Wednesday at the age of 82. The former lawmaker passed away after experiencing “complications from a fall.”
A statement released Wednesday by Lieberman’s family confirmed that the former vice presidential nominee’s death was related to a recent fall.
“Former United States Senator Joseph I. Lieberman died this afternoon, March 27, 2024, in New York City due to complications from a fall,” Lieberman’s family stated. “He was 82 years old. His beloved wife, Hadassah, and members of his family were with him as he passed. Senator Lieberman’s love of God, his family, and America endured throughout his life of service in the public interest.”
According to Fox News, Lieberman made history as the first Jewish American to be nominated for vice president by a major political party. The Post Millennial reported that Lieberman served in the Connecticut State Senate from 1971 to 1981 before serving as Connecticut’s attorney general from 1983 to 1989.
After serving as the state’s attorney general, Lieberman was elected to the United States Senate in 1989, where he remained until he retired in 2013. Despite unsuccessfully campaigning as the Democratic Party’s vice presidential nominee in 2000, Lieberman launched his own campaign in the Democratic Party’s presidential primary election in 2004.
READ MORE: Sen. Dianne Feinstein dies at 90
While Lieberman was unsuccessful in running for president, the Democrat lawmaker was re-elected as an independent Senate candidate in 2006.
During his time in the Senate, Lieberman was instrumental in the Department of Homeland Security’s establishment, according to The Post Millennial. Lieberman also served as chairman of the Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee.
“Connecticut is shocked by Senator Lieberman’s sudden passing,” Sen. Chris Murphy (D-Conn.) wrote Wednesday in a statement on X, formerly Twitter. “In an era of political carbon copies, Joe Lieberman was a singularity. One of one. He fought and won for what he believed was right and for the state he adored. My thoughts are with Hadassah and the entire family.”
Former President George W. Bush described Lieberman as “one of the most decent people” he met during his time in the nation’s capital. Bush said Lieberman was “as fine an American as they come.”
“As a Democrat, Joe wasn’t afraid to engage with Senators from across the aisle and worked hard to earn votes from outside his party,” the former president said. “He engaged in serious and thoughtful debate with opposing voices on important issues. And in both loss and victory, Joe Lieberman was always a gentleman. I’m grateful for Joe’s principled service to our country and for the dignity and patriotism he brought to public life.”
