John Kerry

(1943 - )

John Kerry is an American politican, former Democratic Presidential candidate, and the Secretary of State nominee.

Kerry (born December 11, 1943) was born at Fitzsimons Army Hospital in Aurora, Colorado. Not long after his brith, Kerry's family returned to Massachusetts, where his parents, Richard and Rosemary, lived.

As he was graduating from Yale University, Kerry volunteered to serve in the United States Navy. Rising to the rank of lieutenant, Kerry served two tours of duty in Vietnam and was decorated with a Silver Star, a Bronze Star with Combat V, and three Purple Hearts.

After graduating from Boston College Law School in 1976, he went to work as a top prosecutor in Middlesex County, Massachusetts. In 1982, he was elected Lieutenant Governor of Massachusetts.

Two years later, Kerry was elected to the United States Senate and he has won reelection four-times since. He is now serving his fifth term. As the ranking Democrat on the East Asian and Pacific Affairs Subcommittee, he is a leading expert on that region, including North Korea. He worked on a bipartisan basis to craft the American response to September 11th and has been a leading voice on American policy in Iraq and Afghanistan, the war on terrorism, the Middle East peace process and Israel's security.

In 2002, John Kerry announced that he would be a candidate for president of the United States -- and he went on to mount a come from behind campaign that won the Democratic nomination, and was nearly elected President in a close contest against a wartime president.

Kerry returned to the Senate, where today he is the Chairman of the Senate Foreign Relations Committee. Senator Kerry is the tenth most senior Senator and the second longest serving Senator in his seat. He also holds senior positions on the Finance, Commerce, and Small Business Committees.

In December 2012, President Barack Obama nominated Kerry to be his next secretary of state to succeed Hillary Clinton. Obama considered Kerry to be the ideal candidate for the job with his decades of political experience. "John's played a central role in every major foreign policy debate for nearly 30 years," Obama said in a press conference. Kerry's nomination is expected to be approved by Senate in early 2013.

Kerry is married to Teresa Heinz Kerry, and has two daughters, three sons, and two grandchildren.

Sources: Senator John Kerry