Former Republican Senator and presidential candidate Bob Dole died Sunday, December 5, according to a statement released by his family.
"Senator Robert Joseph Dole died early this morning in his sleep. At his death, at age 98, he had served the United States of America faithfully for 79 years," the statement said.
Dole was first elected to Congress in 1960, serving in the US House of Representatives until 1969. He then moved to the Senate, where he represented Kansas for nearly three decades.
Dole ran for president three times in his career. On his third try, he won the Republican nomination but lost the 1996 election to Bill Clinton.
Dole also was the GOP's vice presidential candidate in 1976, but he and Gerald Ford lost to Jimmy Carter and Walter Mondale.