Pierce was born in the town of Three Rivers, in St. Joseph County, Michigan. He moved with his family to Ann Arbor, Michigan, in 1940 at the age of ten and, after serving in the U.S. Air Force, studied at the University of Michigan, from which he earned a B.A. degree in 1955 and an M.D. degree in 1959.\n', '

Pierce served a two-year term on the Ann Arbor city council from 1964 to 1966. In spring 1967, Pierce made his first bid for the mayoralty of Ann Arbor, winning the Democratic nomination but losing the general election to incumbent Republican mayor Wendell E. Hulcher. In the late 1960s, Pierce also took part in activism against the Vietnam War. (and led the opposition to the Fermi 2 nuclear reactor)\n', '

Pierce ran unsuccessfully for the U.S. House of Representatives from Michigan\'s second district in 1974 and 1976, losing in the Democratic primary on his first attempt, and in the general election on his second attempt to Republican Carl Pursell. He was elected to the Michigan State Senate from the state\'s eighteenth district in 1978, and held the seat through 1982. In the State Senate, Pierce served as chairman of the Health and Social Services Committee and as vice chairman of the Senate Administration and Rules Committee and the Education Committee.\n', '

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