U.S. Senator John McCain died Saturday evening surrounded by friends and family.

McCain served in the Vietnam war where he was captured and tortured for years by the Viet Cong. He famously refused to be released early from captivity, electing to stay in prison with his friends.

After his release, he went on to serve the US for decades in the Senate, where he garnered the reputation and label of being a “maverick”, and willing to cross party lines to achieve goals.

He ran for president twice, winning the GOP nomination in 2008, before losing to Barack Obama in the general election. He had been battling brain cancer for a approximately a year.