Edward Brooke, 1st black popularly elected to US Senate, dies – Republican party spokeswoman

Edward Brooke

(Reuters) – Edward Brooke, the Massachusetts Republican who was the first African-American to be popularly elected to the US Senate, died yesterday, according to Massachusetts Republican Party spokeswoman Kirsten Hughes.

Edward Brooke
Edward Brooke

Brooke, 95, was elected to Congress in 1966 by voters in Massachusetts at a time when the nation was gripped in racial unrest.

He was serving as the Massachusetts attorney general when he was elected to the US Senate.

There had been two black senators shortly after the Civil War but until early in the 20th Century, senators were picked by state legislatures and not by popular vote.