Richard Blumenthal is a prominent American politician and lawyer serving as the senior United States Senator from Connecticut.
A Democrat, he has held this position since January 2011, following his election in 2010 and subsequent reelections in 2016 and 2022.
Born on February 13, 1946, in Brooklyn, New York, into a Jewish family, Blumenthal grew up with strong values of public service and hard work instilled by his parents.
His father, Martin Blumenthal, immigrated to the United States from Frankfurt, Germany, at the age of 17 or 18 to escape Nazi persecution and later built a successful career in commodities trading.
His mother, Jane Rosenstock, originally from Nebraska, graduated from Radcliffe College and worked as a social worker.
Siblings
Richard has one known sibling, his younger brother David Blumenthal.
David is a respected physician and health care policy expert who has served as president of the Commonwealth Fund, a prominent foundation focused on improving health care.
Career
Blumenthal graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa from Harvard College in 1967, where he served as editorial chairman of The Harvard Crimson.
He then attended Yale Law School, earning his J.D. in 1973 and serving as editor-in-chief of the Yale Law Journal.
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Early in his career, he clerked for U.S. Supreme Court Justice Harry A. Blackmun and worked as an aide to U.S. Senators Abraham Ribicoff and Daniel Patrick Moynihan.
From 1977 to 1981, he served as U.S. Attorney for the District of Connecticut, prosecuting cases involving drug trafficking, organized crime, civil rights violations, consumer fraud, and environmental issues.
He enlisted in the U.S. Marine Corps Reserve in 1970 and served until 1976, attaining the rank of sergeant.
Blumenthal entered elected office as a member of the Connecticut House of Representatives from 1984 to 1987, followed by the Connecticut State Senate from 1987 to 1991.
He then became Connecticut’s Attorney General in 1991, serving an unprecedented five terms until 2011.
In that role, he aggressively pursued consumer protection, environmental stewardship, labor rights, and privacy issues, recovering substantial funds for the state and taxpayers.
Since entering the U.S. Senate, he has focused on veterans’ affairs (as a key member and former ranking member of the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee), consumer protection, technology policy, and national security.
Accolades
Blumenthal received the Navy Distinguished Public Service Medal in 2012 from Secretary of the Navy Ray Mabus for his contributions.
In 2025, the Vietnam Veterans of America named him Legislator of the Year for his leadership on veterans’ issues as a top Democrat on the Senate Veterans’ Affairs Committee.
Earlier honors include a public service award from Quinnipiac University School of Law in 2002.
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