Frank Raleigh Lautenberg (/ˈlɔːtənbɜːrɡ/; January 23, 1924 – June 3, 2013) was an American businessman and Democratic Party politician who served as United States Senator from New Jersey from 1982 to 2001, and again from 2003 until his death in 2013.

He died during his fifth term and remains New Jersey's longest serving senator, with a total of 28 years, 5 months and 8 days in office.

In his early years, he served overseas in the U.S. Army Signal Corps from 1942 to 1946 as a part of the war effort, and after returning home his interest in American political events increased.

He has been called "the last of the New Deal liberals" and was known for his legislative efforts against drunk driving, and his support of spending for Amtrak and urban public transportation, for stronger environmental regulations, greater consumer protections, and investigations of wrongdoing by Wall Street.

[3][4] He was named after his maternal grandfather, Frank Bergen, and close family friend and Paterson community activist, Raleigh Weintrob.

[5][6][7] When Lautenberg was 19, his father, who worked in silk mills, sold coal, farmed, and once ran a tavern, died of cancer.

[8] After graduating from Nutley High School in 1941, Lautenberg served overseas in the United States Army Signal Corps during World War II from 1942 to 1946.

[9] Then, financed by the GI Bill, he attended and graduated from Columbia Business School's now-defunct undergraduate program in 1949 with a degree in economics.

He faced nine other candidates: former State Banking Commissioner Angelo Bianchi, former Morristown Mayor Donald Cresitello, former Congressman Joseph A. LeFante, labor leader Frank Forst, former Congressman Andrew Maguire, Richard McAleer, businessman Howard Rosen, Princeton Mayor Barbara Boggs Sigmund, and Passaic County Freeholder Cyril Yannarelli.

He emphasised President Reagan's unpopularity, reminded the voters that she would be a vote for a Republican majority in the Senate and called Fenwick, who was 72, "eccentric" and "erratic" but denied that he was referring to her age.

[17] The same year, he spoke at the Democratic National Convention, though he was overshadowed by New York Governor Mario Cuomo, who gave the keynote speech.

[19] In the 1988 election, Lautenberg was opposed by Republican Wall Street executive, former college football star Brigadier General Pete Dawkins, who won the 1958 Heisman Trophy for the Army Black Knights.

After trailing in early polls, the Lautenberg campaign, headed by Democratic consultant James Carville, ran an aggressive advertising campaign enumerating Lautenberg's legislative accomplishments and raising the possibility that Dawkins' candidacy was intended solely as a stepping stone to the presidency, as well as pointing out his lack of roots in New Jersey.

[24] The amendment granted presumptive refugee status to Jewish people and members of other groups from the Soviet Union, and facilitated the emigration of hundreds of thousands of Jews to the United States.

Lautenberg raised his concerns in a meeting with Democratic senators in 1999, and Torricelli responded by shouting, "You're a fucking piece of shit, and I'm going to cut your balls off!

However, an ongoing investigation into the Senator's activities and business dealings resulted in federal corruption charges being filed against him before the election.

This was met with an almost immediate challenge by Forrester and the Republicans as New Jersey law forbade the replacement of candidates on the ballot after a certain deadline.

This was despite the fact that he had agreed to run for office with the implicit understanding that Democratic leader Tom Daschle would allow him to retain seniority and serve on the Appropriations Committee.

He was reported to have been upset with his treatment and commented that "when you come down from a relatively lofty position of seniority, the atmosphere is different", having been given one of the least prestigious office spaces behind a fire exit door.

He was pro-choice, supported gun control, introduced many bills increasing penalties for carjacking and car theft, and criticized the Bush administration on national security issues.

[36] Congressman Steve Rothman and State Senator John Adler both mooted the possibility of running, but said they would defer to Lautenberg.

[68] On February 19, 2010, his office announced that Lautenberg had been diagnosed with a diffuse large b-cell lymphoma (an aggressive but curable blood cancer that appears in organs like the stomach) at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York.

[69] He had been hospitalized with profuse gastric bleeding following a fall in his Cliffside Park, New Jersey, home shortly after returning from a Haiti trip with a 12-member congressional delegation.

[71] Six to eight chemotherapy treatments of the intensive R-CHOP regimen followed every 21 days over several months, and a doctor for Lautenberg at the time said a full recovery was expected.

[77] Congress passed on September 20, 2013, a spending bill, H.J.Res.59 – Continuing Appropriations Resolution, 2014, that included a $174,000 tax-free death benefit payment to his widow.

An annual salary payment to the widow or family member of a deceased lawmaker is a long-standing tradition for the United States Congress going back to the 1800s.

[78] On June 4, 2013, Governor Chris Christie announced that a special election to fill the vacant Senate seat would be held on October 16, 2013.

[79][80] On June 6, 2013, Christie appointed Republican New Jersey Attorney General Jeffrey Chiesa to fill the Senate seat until the elected winner could be sworn in.