Joe Lieberman, a former US senator, dies at age 82

Former US senator and Democratic Party vice presidential nominee Joe Lieberman died on Wednesday at age 82 in New York City after suffering complications from a fall, his family said.

"His beloved wife, Hadassah, and members of his family were with him when he passed," the statement said.

Lieberman was the Democratic Party's vice presidential nominee in the 2000 election, which was won by Republican George W. Bush over Democrat Al Gore. 

He failed in a bid for the 2004 Democratic presidential nomination, hurt by his support for the Iraq War.

A centrist, Lieberman was first elected to the US Senate in 1988. He lost the state's Democratic primary in 2006, but retained his seat by winning the general election as an independent candidate.

In a further break from the Democratic Party, Lieberman endorsed Republican Senator John McCain for president in a speech at the Republican National Convention in 2008.

But Lieberman would later back Democrats Hillary Clinton in 2016 and Joe Biden in 2020 in their bids for the presidency.

Lieberman retired from the Senate in 2013 after four six-year terms.

Reuters