Former Colorado Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell dies at 92
Former Colorado Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell - public domain
Former U.S. Senator Ben Nighthorse Campbell, who served two terms representing Colorado in the Senate beginning in 1993, died Tuesday at 92, according to media reports.
Campbell was elected to the Senate as a Democrat, but in early 1995 switched to the Republican Party in a move that “startled and puzzled the political world,” The New York Times reported at the time. He was reelected in 1998 but declined to run for a third term in 2004, citing health concerns.
George W. Bush greets Ben Nighthorse Campbell - public domain
Born in California to a Portuguese mother and a father of Northern Cheyenne descent, Campbell was the fourth Native American elected to the U.S. Senate, and the first since the 1920s. He competed in judo at the 1964 Summer Olympics in Tokyo, and later became a well-known jewelry maker while making his home near Ignacio.
Prior to his election to the Senate, he had served two terms as a state lawmaker representing southwest Colorado, and three terms representing the 3rd District in the U.S. House.
In a statement issued late Tuesday night, Colorado Governor Jared Polis ordered flags lowered to half staff to honor the passing of Senator Nighthorse Campbell. The Governor ordered flags to be lowered to half staff from sunrise to sunset on the day of the service, which has not yet been announced.
“I was sad to hear of the passing of Senator Nighthorse Campbell. From being an Olympic athlete, to jewelry designer, horse trainer and then public servant at the state and federal level, he lived many different lives in his own unique way and always found a way to give back and serve. He was the only Native American in the United States Senate when he served, and also served the United States with distinction in the US Air Force. And he worked tirelessly to help build the National museum of the American Indian in Washington, DC.,” said Polis.
Campbell served as chair of the Senate Indian Affairs Committee until his retirement in 2005. During his House tenure, he sponsored legislation to establish the National Museum of the American Indian.
He later joined the firm Holland & Knight as a lobbyist. Lake Nighthorse, a reservoir near Durango constructed in 2003 as part of the Animas-La Plata Water Project, is named in his honor.
