When Sen. Don Holland was first elected to office in 1951, he was 23 and fresh out of the University of South Carolina.

Holland, a Democrat from Camden, was a man with a lifelong passion for people and politics; a legislator who respected the law, while maintaining his love for his hometown, his family and fishing.

Up until his death, the senator who spent most of his life in public office was still serving South Carolina and his home of Kershaw County.

Holland, 75, who had been the longest-serving active lawmaker in South Carolina, died of a heart-related ailment Sunday morning.

“He loved serving people and doing for people,” said his friend of 40 years, state Sen. John Land, D-Clarendon. “That’s what kept him in office so long.”

Holland was a Camden attorney who grew up on a farm in Cassatt, his friends said. A World War II veteran, he was elected to the S.C. House in 1951, serving until 1954, and again from 1957-1964. He also served on the S.C. Highway Commission from 1964-1968.

He was elected to the S.C. Senate in 1969 and served consecutively for 34 years. Holland sat on five Senate committees, including Judiciary, where he served as chairman until Republicans took control of the Senate in 2001 and scrapped that body’s seniority system in favor of appointing committee heads based on party.

He had plans to keep going.

Former Gov. Jim Hodges said Holland called him last week to say he was running for re-election to the Senate in 2004.

“He was telling me about his plans, and he was excited,” Hodges said. “He was a great guy, a fella who really got a lot of things done in the Senate. He had an immense capacity to help people.”

Gov. Mark Sanford said Holland gave South Carolina “a lifetime of consistent advocacy.”

“He’s had a tremendous impact on the political process here in our state over the past six decades, and during that time he’s earned the trust and respect of his colleagues in both Houses and on both sides of the aisle,” said Sanford, a Republican.

Once the Senate Judiciary chairman, Holland oversaw key judicial reform legislation during his time, said state Sen. John Courson, R-Richland.

In 1996, the state’s widely praised judicial reform law created a commission that could veto unqualified candidates for state judges and pass along only the best candidates to lawmakers for a final choice.

Courson said Holland kept out of legislative squabbles and often acted as a mediator of sorts.

“He was the kind of guy who would put his arms on your shoulder and say, ‘Hey you guys, y’all need to sit down and work this out.”

Once he gave his commitment, Courson said you could count on Holland’s word.

“And that is why I think he was so highly regarded.”

Recently, Land said Holland was in support of raising taxes in order to fully fund Medicaid and Medicare programs.

On his home turf of Kershaw County, “anything that state government did here, there wasn’t anything he didn’t have some hand in,” said state Rep. Vincent Sheheen, D-Kershaw.

“It’s hard to isolate any one thing,” Sheheen said. “His whole life was dedicated to public service.”

Sheheen said he wouldn’t speculate as to who would run to fill Holland’s place.

Holland’s shoes will be hard to fill, his colleagues said.

“As we move forward in the days and years ahead, his leadership, intellect and most importantly friendship will be sorely missed and will create a void that will never be filled in the Senate,” Senate President Pro Tem Glenn McConnell, R-Charleston, said in a statement.

Holland is survived by his wife, Betty, and daughter, Lisa. Funeral arrangements have not yet been made.

The Associated Press and staff writer Aaron Gould Sheinin contributed to this story. Reach Angle at mangle@thestate.com or (803) 771-8512.