American statesman Hubert Horatio Humphrey was born in Wallace, South Dakota, and educated at universities in Minnesota and Louisiana. He was elected Mayor of Minneapolis in 1945 and, as a Democrat, US Senator in 1948.

Humphrey became known as a liberal, especially on issues of civil rights. After he became Lyndon Johnson's running-mate in the successful 1964 Presidential election, Humphrey became unpopular for his support of the war in Vietnam.

Although he won the Democratic nomination for President in 1968, the opposition of a strong minority of Democrats and general disillusionment with Democratic policies led to his defeat by Richard M. Nixon in the election.

Humphrey continued with his Senate career and was viewed as an elder statesman of American politics for the rest of his life.