Lyndon LaRouche, Jr. was born 8 September 1922 in Rochester, New Hampshire where he was raised Quaker by his father Lyndon Hermyle LaRouche Sr. (1896-1983) and mother Jessie Lenore Weir (1893-1978). After attending North Eastern University in 1942, LaRouche served in the U.S. Army in Burma and India, where he became intrigued by Communist ideology. He based his ideas on Trotskyism, Marxist economic theory, and ancient philosophy. Years later, in 1948, he became an active member of the Socialist Workers Party. In 1953, he adopted the pseudonym Lyn Marcus for his political work. In1968, he founded the National Caucus of Labor Committees (NCLC). By 1973, the NCLC had attracted more than a hundred members in the United States and western Europe. Due to the organization's fast expansion a paper, New Solidarity, was established. LaRouche, along with NCLC followers, created "Operation Mop-Up" in which they tried to take full control of the U.S. Communist Party by physically attacking new left group members in the Socialist Workers Party and the Progressive Labor Party. At the same time, in 1973, LaRouche formed a new organization called U.S. Labor Party to serve as a political support for the NCLC. In August of 1983, Lyndon LaRouche moved to Loudoun County from his headquarters in New York.

Lyndon LaRouche, a perennial presidential candidate, campaigned once for his own U.S. Labor Party (1976) and seven times for the Democratic Party (1980-2004). His extreme political views were targeted against U.S. economy leadership, international organizations, and foreign governments. LaRouche's organization raised millions of dollars through loans and donations. Yet, under FBI investigation, LaRouche was accused of illegally taking funds from donor's credit cards without their consent. On 16 December 1988, LaRouche was convicted and sentenced to serve 15 years. He was released on parole in 26 January 1994.

Despite his negative image and aggressive political propaganda, he gained followers from around the country ranging from volunteers to political candidates beginning in the 1960s until the formation of LaRouche Youth Movement in 2000. LaRouche married Janice Neuberger in 1954 and had his first son Daniel in August 1956. Following his divorce in 1963 from Neuberger he married, German activist Helga Zepp, (25 August 1948) in 1977.