page_title: Arlen Specter
section_title: Campaigns
hierarchical_section_title: Arlen Specter / Campaigns
caption_attribution_description: English: Senator Arlen Specter (R-PA) campaigning
context_page_description: Arlen Specter was an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as United States Senator for Pennsylvania. Specter was a Democrat from 1951 to 1965, then a Republican from 1965 until 2009, when he switched back to the Democratic Party. First elected in 1980, he represented Pennsylvania in the U.S. Senate for 30 years.
  Specter was born in Wichita, Kansas, to emigrant Russian/Ukrainian Jewish parents. He graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and served with the United States Air Force during the Korean War. Specter later graduated from Yale Law School and opened a law firm with Marvin Katz, who would later become a federal judge. Specter served as assistant counsel for the Warren Commission investigating the assassination of John F. Kennedy and helped devise the "single-bullet theory". In 1965, Specter was elected District Attorney of Philadelphia, a position that he held until 1973.
  During his 30-year Senate career, Specter staked out a spot in the political center. In 2006, he was selected by Time as one of America's Ten Best Senators. Specter lost his 2010 re-election bid in the Democratic primary to former U.S.
context_section_description: In 1980, Specter became the Republican nominee for Senate when Republican incumbent Richard Schweiker announced his retirement. He faced the former Mayor of Pittsburgh, Pete Flaherty. Specter won the election by a 2.5% margin. He was later re-elected in 1986, 1992, 1998, and 2004, despite 1992 and 1998 being bad years for Republicans. Specter ran for re-election in 2010, for the first time as a Democrat, but was defeated in the primary.
caption: Specter campaigning for re-election
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