Cardin, Benjamin Louis (1943-…), has been a United States senator since 2007. Cardin, a Democrat, represents Maryland. Prior to his election as senator, Cardin served in the U.S. House of Representatives.
Cardin, who is often called Ben Cardin, was born on Oct. 5, 1943, in Baltimore. In 1964, he received a bachelor’s degree from the University of Pittsburgh. In 1967, he earned a law degree from the University of Maryland School of Law.
Cardin was elected to the Maryland House of Delegates in 1966, while he was still a law student. He was a delegate in the legislature until 1986 and served as its speaker from 1979 to 1986.
From 1987 to 2007, Cardin represented Maryland in the House of Representatives. As a member of the House, Cardin’s priorities included expanding access to health care and student loans. He also authored legislation to help people build their retirement accounts.
In 2006, Cardin won election to his first term in the Senate. He took office in 2007. As a senator, Cardin has served on a number of Senate committees or subcommittees, including Environment and Public Works; Finance; Foreign Relations; and Small Business and Entrepreneurship. Cardin won reelection to the Senate in 2012 and 2018. In May 2023, Cardin announced that he would not seek reelection in 2024.
