Richard Ottinger

Ottinger was born in New York City on January 27, 1929. He was the nephew of Albert Ottinger, a Republican who served as Attorney General of New York from 1925 to 1928. He attended the public schools of Scarsdale, New York, and graduated from the Loomis School in Windsor, Connecticut, in 1946. He received a bachelor of arts degree from Cornell University in 1950 and graduated from Harvard Law School in 1953. He also studied international law at Georgetown University. He served in the United States Air Force from 1955 to 1957 and was discharged as a captain. Ottinger was admitted to the New York bar and practiced international and corporate law. He was the second staff member of the Peace Corps, serving as director of programs for the west coast of South America from 1961 to 1964. ==Political career==

U.S. House of Representatives (1965–1971) In the 1964 elections, Ottinger was elected as a Democrat to the 89th United States Congress and was re-elected twice in 1966 and 1968. which included all of Putnam County and part of Westchester County. After the 1964 election, the result was challenged by Ottinger's opponent, incumbent U.S. Rep. Robert Barry. Barry alleged that Ottinger used a loophole in election laws to spend $193,000 of his own money to get around a contribution limit of $8,000 in the race. According to Barry, Ottinger set up multiple committees and gave money to all of them. Most prominently, Ottinger's mother, Louise, and sister, Patricia Heath, had set up 22 different committees that in turn donated $6,000 apiece to his campaign. U.S. Senate campaign (1970) In the 1970 elections, Ottinger gave up his House seat to run on the Democratic ticket for United States Senator from New York. In the 1970 election, Ottinger split the liberal vote with the Republican (and Liberal-endorsed) nominee, incumbent Senator Charles Goodell (who was appointed by Governor Nelson Rockefeller after the assassination of Senator Robert F. Kennedy). Both were defeated by the nominee of the Conservative party, James L. Buckley, in a three-way race. Return to U.S. House of Representatives (1975–1985) In 1974, Ottinger was elected to the House from New York's 24th congressional district. (He previously sought to return to Congress in 1972, but was defeated.) ==Academic career ==

After retiring from Congress, Ottinger became a professor at the Elisabeth Haub School of Law at Pace University. He founded an environmental law program there and served as the law school dean from 1995 to 1999. He was named dean emeritus of the law school following his retirement. ==Personal life and death==

Ottinger was Jewish. Ottinger was hospitalized on January 30, 2026, undergoing surgery for an intracerebral hemorrhage. He spent his final days in palliative care at his home in Mamaroneck, New York, until his death on February 16, 2026, at the age of 97. He was survived by his wife, June (née Godfrey), whom he had married in 1987, as well as four children and 10 grandchildren. ==See also==