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| Date of birth | February 12, 1930(age 81) | | Place of birth | Wichita, Kansas | | Political party | Democratic
(1951 � 1965, April 28, 2009 � present)
Republican
(1966 � April 28, 2009) | | Spouse | Joan Specter | | Residence | Philadelphia, Pennsylvania | | Alma mater | University of Pennsylvania (B.S.)
Yale University (J.D.) | | Occupation | Attorney | | Committees | Appropriations, Judiciary, Veterans' Affairs, Special Committee on Aging | | Religion | Judaism | | Service/branch | United States Air Force | | Years of service | 1951 � 1953 | | Rank | First Lieutenant | | In office | January 3, 1981 - January 3, 2011 | | Succeeded by | Pat Toomey | | Preceded by | Richard Schweiker | | In office | January 3, 1995 - January 3, 1997 | | Succeeded by | Richard Shelby | | Preceded by | Dennis DeConcini | | In office | January 3, 1997 - January 3, 2001 | | Succeeded by | Jay Rockefeller | | Preceded by | Alan Simpson | | In office | January 20 - June 6, 2001 | | Succeeded by | Jay Rockefeller | | Preceded by | Jay Rockefeller | | In office | January 3, 2003 - January 3, 2005 | | Succeeded by | Larry Craig | | Preceded by | Jay Rockefeller | | In office | January 3, 2005 - January 3, 2007 | | Succeeded by | Patrick Leahy | | Preceded by | Orrin Hatch | | In office | 1966 - 1974 | | Succeeded by | Emmitt Fitzpatrick | | Preceded by | James Crumlish |
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Arlen Specter (born February 12, 1930) is a former United States Senator from Pennsylvania. Specter is a Democrat, but was a Republican from 1965 until switching to the Democratic Party in 2009. Elected to the Senate in 1980, Specter staked out a spot in the political center.
Specter was born in Wichita, Kansas to a Russian immigrant father and graduated from the University of Pennsylvania. He later served with the United States Air Force during the Korean War, graduated from Yale Law School, and opened a law firm with Marvin Katz, who would later become a federal judge. Additionally, 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 would hold until he lost his re-election bid in 1973. In 1980, Specter was elected for the first time to the U.S. Senate for Pennsylvania.
On April 28, 2009, Specter announced that, after 44 years as an elected Republican, he was switching membership to the Democratic Party, On May 18, 2010, Specter was defeated in the Democratic primary by Joe Sestak. He was replaced by current Senator Pat Toomey on January 3, 2011.
In the Fall of 2011 Specter will teach a course on the relationship between Congress and the U.S. Supreme Court, focusing on separation of powers and the confirmation process, at the University of Pennsylvania Law School.
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