Political leader and attorney. The son of  Polish Jewish immigrants, he was first elected to the Connecticut legislature in 1938 and to the U.S. Congress in 1948  Ribicoff, a Democrat, ran for the U.S. Senate in 1950 but lost. Two year later, he was elected Governor. He was appointed U.S. Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare by President Kennedy in 1961. He resigned after 18 months to successfully run for the Senate. He then served as U.S. Senator from Connecticut until 1980.