Former U.S. Vice President Walter F. Mondale passed away at his home in Minneapolis, family spokesperson Kathy Tunheim said, perThe New York Times. He was 93. A cause of death was not disclosed.
Mondale, who was also a former Democratic presidential nominee and Minnesota Senator from 1964 to 1976, served as Vice President to Jimmy Carter between 1977 and 1981. Prior to serving in the U.S. Senate, Mondale was Attorney General of Minnesota from 1960 to 1964.
“Today I mourn the passing of my dear friend Walter Mondale, who I consider the best vice president in our country’s history,” Carter wrote in response to the news of Mondale’s death. “During our administration, Fritz used his political skill and personal integrity to transform the vice presidency into a dynamic, policy-driving force that had never been seen before and still exists today. He was an invaluable partner and an able servant of the people of Minnesota, the United States, and the world. Fritz Mondale provided us all with a model for public service and private behavior. Rosalynn and I join all Americans in giving thanks for his exemplary life, and we extend our deepest condolences to his family.”
Former President Barack Obama, Vice President Kamala Harris, Minnesota Senator Amy Klobuchar, and others remembered Mondale and his legacy on social media.
Mondale, who was called Fritz as a nickname, was born in Ceylon, Minnesota and went on to get a Bachelor of Arts degree in political science from the University of Minnesota in 1951. He then received a law degree from the University of Minnesota Law School in 1956.
Mondale ran for president in the 1984 election and picked U.S. Representative Geraldine Ferraro to be his running mate, making her the first woman on a major-party ticket. Mondale eventually lost to Ronald Reagan in a landslide and received only 13 electoral votes while the Republican president got 525.
Following his failed presidential bid Mondale served as U.S. ambassador to Japan under the Bill Clinton administration from 1993-1996.
Mondale is survived by his two sons, Ted and William. Mondale’s wife Joan Adams died in 2014 at the age of 83. The couple’s daughter Eleanor Mondale died in 2011 at the age of 51 after a battle with brain cancer.
