Harkin, Thomas Richard (1939-…), served as a member of the United States Senate from 1985 to 2015. Harkin, a Democrat, represented Iowa.
Harkin was born in Cumming, Iowa, on Nov. 19, 1939. He earned a bachelor’s degree from Iowa State University in 1962. He was a jet pilot in the United States Navy from 1962 to 1967. He served in the Naval Reserve forces from 1968 to 1974.
In 1969 and 1970, Harkin served as staff assistant to U.S. Representative Neal Smith of Iowa. Harkin received a law degree from Catholic University of America in 1972 and then began working as a lawyer in Des Moines, Iowa. From 1973 to 1974, he served as an attorney for the Polk County, Iowa, Legal Aid Society.
In 1974, Harkin was first elected to the United States House of Representatives, where he served from 1975 to 1985. In 1984, he ran for the U.S. Senate and won. He was reelected every six years through 2008. Harkin became known as a consistent liberal voice in the Senate, supporting investments in education and health care. He cosponsored the Americans with Disabilities Act, which became law in 1990. He was a key supporter of the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act, a major health insurance reform law passed by Congress in 2010. As a chairman of the Agriculture Committee, Harkin supported renewable energy programs and land conservation efforts. Harkin voted for the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) in 1996, but he later cosponsored legislation to repeal the law. The law excluded same-sex marriage from legal recognition by the federal government. Harkin did not seek to retain his Senate seat in the 2014 elections.
