Biography:

Born the son and grandson of Navy admirals, John McCain spent more than 20 years in the Navy, a quarter of it in a Vietnamese prisoner of war camp.

On Oct. 26, 1967, his jet was shot down over Hanoi during a bombing mission. He broke both arms and shattered a shoulder and a knee while ejecting from the aircraft and when he landed, was pulled from a lake by a North Vietnamese mob who stabbed him with bayonets.

McCain was beaten repeatedly over the next 5 1/2 years. When his captors learned he was the son of a prominent Navy admiral, they offered to release him early. McCain refused to go along with what he saw as a propaganda ploy, and he insisted that soldiers captured before him leave first.

After retiring from the Navy, McCain moved to Arizona and in 1982 was elected to Congress, succeeding Republican John Rhodes who retired after serving 30 years. McCain served two terms in the U.S. House before he ran successfully for the Senate in 1986, 1992 and 1998.

He and his wife, Cindy, have four children together. McCain also has three children from his first marriage.

Past Campaigns:

John McCain served as a U.S. House member from Arizona from 1983-1986 and was first elected to the U.S. Senate in 1986, winning 61 percent of the vote. He was re-elected in 1992 with 56 percent of the vote and in 1998 with 69 percent of the vote.

He sought the Republican nomination for president in 2000 and won primaries in New Hampshire, Michigan, Arizona, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Vermont before conceding the race to George W. Bush.

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