Former Indiana Sen. Birch Bayh, the man behind the landmark Title IX legislation, died Thursday morning from pneumonia at the age of 91.
Besides serving in the Senate for three terms, the liberal Democrat was also the father of former Indiana Gov. and Sen. Evan Bayh, who lost a comeback Senate bid in 2016.
The elder Bayh first ran for the Senate at age 34, after serving four terms in the Indiana state House. Republican Dan Quayle defeated him in 1980. He made a short-lived bid for the Democratic presidential nomination in 1976.
Besides Title IX, which opened access to all educational opportunities to women, Bayh authored two constitutional amendments. The 25th Amendment changed the order of presidential succession. The 26th Amendment lowered the voting age from 21 to 18.
