Rush Holt Jr.

Rush Holt Jr.
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from New Jersey's 12th district
In office
January 3, 1999 – January 3, 2015
Preceded byMichael Pappas
Succeeded byBonnie Watson Coleman
Personal details
Born
Rush Dew Holt Jr.

(1948-10-15) October 15, 1948 (age 75)
Weston, West Virginia, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseMargaret Lancefield
Children3
Parents
EducationCarleton College (BS)
New York University (MS, PhD)
Signature
WebsiteAAAS website
Scientific career
FieldsPhysics
Institutions
ThesisCalcium absorption lines and solar activity: a systematic program of observations (1981)
Doctoral advisorH. Henry Stroke[1]

Rush Dew Holt Jr. (born October 15, 1948) is an American scientist and politician who served as the U.S. representative for New Jersey's 12th congressional district from 1999 to 2015. He is a member of the Democratic Party and son of former West Virginia U.S. Senator Rush D. Holt Sr. He worked as a professor of public policy and physics, and during his tenure in Congress he was one of two physicists and the only Quaker there.[2]

Holt sought the Democratic nomination in the 2013 special primary election to fill the seat of U.S. Senator Frank Lautenberg, who died in office on June 3, 2013. He lost the nomination to Newark Mayor Cory Booker.[3] Holt announced on February 18, 2014 that he would not seek re-election to the U.S. House that year.[4]

In February 2015, Holt became chief executive officer of the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS) and executive publisher of the Science family of journals.[5] He served in that role until his retirement in September 2019. [6]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference thesis was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Hamm, Thomas D (2003). The Quakers in America. Columbia University Press. p. 160. ISBN 9780231123631.
  3. ^ AP (August 13, 2014). "Newark Mayor Cory Booker wins Democratic primary for U.S. Senate seat". CBS News.
  4. ^ Zernike, Kate (February 18, 2014). "Representative Rush Holt, of New Jersey, Will Not Seek Re-election". New York Times.
  5. ^ "Rush D. Holt Chief Executive Officer". AAAS. Retrieved 13 March 2017.
  6. ^ "Rush Holt Retires from AAAS; Alan Leshner Named Acting CEO". AAAS. Retrieved 22 August 2019.