Richard Hudson Bryan

Democrat Senator of Nevada

Congresses Served

Senate Terms

January 1, 1937 (88 years old)

Birthday

Retired American politician and attorney
Served as the 25th Governor of Nevada from 1983 to 1989
Served as a United States Senator from 1989 until 2001
Previously served as Nevada’s attorney general and a member of the State Senate
Graduated from the University of Nevada at Reno in 1959 and earned a J.D. from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law
Admitted to the Nevada Bar in 1963 and was Clark County’s first public defender
Defeated incumbent Republican Nevada Governor Robert List in 1982 and was reelected in 1986
Encouraged by prominent politicians to run for the U.S. Senate, defeating incumbent Republican Senator Chic Hecht in 1988
Served on the Finance, Banking, Intelligence, and Commerce Committees during his tenure in the Senate
Opposed the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence (SETI) and introduced an amendment that terminated NASA’s SETI efforts
Focused on preventing Yucca Mountain from being used as a nuclear waste long-term storage site
Opted not to run for a third term in the Senate in 2000
Served as Chair of the Senate Ethics Committee from 1993 to 1995