The casket carrying former U.S. Sen. Ernest "Fritz" Hollings is carried up the steps of the South Carolina Statehouse Monday, April 15, 2019, in Columbia, S.C. (AP Photo/Mic Smith)

COLUMBIA, S.C. - The Latest on the funeral of Ernest 'Fritz' Hollings (all times local):

6 p.m.

Several hundred people have filed past the casket of Ernest F. "Fritz" Hollings to pay respects to the former South Carolina governor and longtime U.S. senator who died this month at age 97.

Hollings' casket lay in repose Monday at the State House in Columbia from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Democrat Dick Riley served as South Carolina's governor from 1979 to 1987 and remembered Hollings as a fierce debater and loyal Democrat. But Riley says Hollings was also open to hearing viewpoints of those with whom he disagreed politically.

Hollings died April 6 at his home. When he retired from the Senate in 2005, Hollings' 38 years and two months made him the eighth longest-serving senator in U.S. history.

A funeral is planned for Tuesday at The Citadel.

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12:30 p.m.

More than 100 mourners have paid their respects to Ernest F. "Fritz" Hollings, the former South Carolina governor and longtime U.S. senator who died this month at age 97.

Hollings' children were the first to file past his body, now lying in repose Monday at the State House in Columbia, followed by Gov. Henry McMaster and his wife Peggy. Afterward, McMaster told reporters on Monday that Hollings "was among the best of us."

McMaster and former Vice-President Joe Biden are among the speakers planned for Hollings' funeral Tuesday at The Citadel.

When he retired from the Senate in 2005, Hollings had served 38 years and two months, making him the eighth longest-serving senator in U.S. history.

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10:15 a.m.

The body of Ernest F. "Fritz" Hollings has arrived at the South Carolina Statehouse, where mourners are paying their respects to the former South Carolina governor and longtime U.S. senator.

Hollings' body is lying in repose Monday at the Capitol in Columbia. He died earlier this month at 97.

One of the last of the larger-than-life Democrats who dominated politics in the South, Hollings' long and colorful political career included an unsuccessful bid for the Democratic presidential nomination.

When he retired from the Senate in 2005, Hollings had served 38 years and two months, making him the eighth longest-serving senator in U.S. history.

A funeral is planned Tuesday at The Citadel, where former Vice-President Joe Biden and Gov. Henry McMaster will be among the speakers.

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1 a.m.

Mourners are paying their respects to Ernest F. "Fritz" Hollings, the former South Carolina governor and longtime U.S. senator who died this month at the age of 97.

The body of the longtime figure in South Carolina politics lies in repose starting at midmorning Monday at the Statehouse in Columbia.

One of the last of the larger-than-life Democrats who dominated politics in the South, Hollings' long and colorful political career included an unsuccessful bid for the Democratic presidential nomination.

When he retired from the Senate in 2005, Hollings had served 38 years and two months, making him the eighth longest-serving senator in U.S. history.

A funeral is planned Tuesday at The Citadel, where former Vice-President Joe Biden and Gov. Henry McMaster are among the speakers.

News from © The Associated Press, 2019