A native of Pennsylvania, Rick Santorum was a candidate for the Republican nomination for President of the United States in 2012, winning 11 states and nearly 4 million votes during the Republican primary process. Prior to that, Santorum served in the U.S. House of Representatives from 1991 – 1995 and in the U.S. Senate from 1995 to 2007. He served eight years on the Senate Armed Services Committee where he led the fight before the attacks of September 11th, 2001 to transform our military from a Cold War force to meet today’s threats. His accomplishments also include reviving America’s communities and empowering citizens to enjoy better lives, reforming the welfare system, fighting against poverty by championing programs that empower all citizens and protect the most vulnerable among us, combating the global HIV/AIDS epidemic, strengthening and protecting Social Security, providing every American with access to quality, affordable healthcare, lowering the tax burden on working families, reducing America’s dependency on foreign sources of oil, speaking out against religious persecution – in particular persecution of Jews and Christians in the Middle East, and promoting democracy and religious liberty around the world.