Edward Brooke

Edward William Brooke III (born October 26, 1919) is an American politician and was the first African American to be elected by popular vote to the United States Senate when he was elected as a Republican from Massachusetts in 1966, defeating his Democratic opponent, Endicott Peabody 58%-42%.

Born in Washington, DC, Brooke graduated from Howard University in 1941 and graduated from Boston University Law School in 1948. He was a captain in the United States Army, infantry.

He was the chairman of Finance Commission, city of Boston from 1961-1962. Brooke was elected attorney general of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in 1962 and reelected in 1964. In this position, he gained a reputation as a vigorous prosecutor of organized crime.

He was a U.S. Senator for two terms from January 3, 1967 to January 3, 1979. In 1967 he served on the President's Commission on Civil Disorders. He was a member of the liberal wing of the Republican Party, and often had conflicts with President Richard Nixon, particularly in 1970 when Brooke helped lead the movement to stop the Senate confirmation of the President's nominee to the Supreme Court, Harold Carswell. Brooke was re-elected in 1972, defeating Democrat John Droney 62%-34%. However, he lost much of his popularity during his second term after a contentious and widely publicized divorce. He lost a bid for a third term in 1978 to Democratic Representative Paul Tsongas 55%-45%. After leaving the Senate, he was a member of the Low Income Housing Commission.

In September 2002, he was diagnosed with breast cancer and since then, has assumed a national role in raising awareness of the disease among men.

Brooke was a prominent member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity Inc., the first intercollegiate Greek-letter fraternity established for African Americans.