Robert D. Holmes
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Robert Denison Holmes (May 11, 1909 - June 6, 1976) was an American politician, a Democrat, and the twenty-eighth governor of the state of Oregon, USA, from 1957 to 1959.
Holmes was born in Canisteo, New York, and moved to Oregon in 1925. Prior to entering politics, he was involved in advertising and radio work. He was elected to the Oregon State Senate in 1948. He was elected in 1956 to complete the two years remaining on the term of Governor Paul L. Patterson, who had died in office. In the 1956 general election, Holmes defeated Elmo Smith, the State Senate president who had assumed the job after Patterson's death.
During his governorship, Holmes sought to make state government more efficient and responsive. He supported public power development, and the abolition of capital punishment. In 1958, he lost his bid for re-election to Mark Hatfield, a rising star in the Oregon Republican party.
Following his governorship, Holmes hosted a television public affairs program, and served on Oregon's Board of Higher Education.
| Preceded by: Elmo Smith |
Governors of Oregon | Succeeded by: Mark Hatfield |
| Governors of Oregon |  |
|---|---|
| Whiteaker • Gibbs • Woods • Grover • Chadwick • Thayer • Moody • Pennoyer • Lord • Geer • Chamberlain • Benson • Bowerman • West • Withycombe • Olcott • Pierce • I. Patterson • Norblad • Meier • Martin • Sprague • Snell • Hall • McKay • P. Patterson • Smith • Holmes • Hatfield • McCall • Straub • Atiyeh • Goldschmidt • Roberts • Kitzhaber • Kulongoski |
