Sen. Jay Rockefeller. AP
CHARLESTON, W.Va. — US Sen. Jay Rockefeller is heading into retirement after a half century of public service.
The five-term senator from West Virginia says he “could not imagine a more rewarding career.”
Rockefeller is the last member of the Rockefeller family dynasty in political office — and the only Democrat.
He arrived in West Virginia in 1964 as a social worker and switched party affiliations two years later when he was elected to the state House of Delegates. After stints as secretary of state, a college president and as governor, he was elected to the US Senate in 1984.
Former President Bill Clinton says West Virginia — and America — are better off because as a young man, Rockefeller chose a life of service.