Ray Charles Bliss (December 16, 1907 – August 6, 1981) was one of the important national U.S. Republican Party leaders of the 1960s and served as chairman of the

Republican National Committee The Republican National Committee (RNC) is a U.S. political committee that assists the Republican Party of the United States. It is responsible for developing and promoting the Republican brand and political platform, as well as assisting in f ...

from 1965 to 1969. He helped to pull the Republican party back together after

Barry Goldwater Barry Morris Goldwater (January 2, 1909 – May 29, 1998) was an American politician and United States Air Force officer who was a five-term U.S. Senator from Arizona (1953–1965, 1969–1987) and the United States Republican Party, Republ ...

's defeat in 1964 and his work culminated in the election of

Richard M. Nixon Richard Milhous Nixon (January 9, 1913April 22, 1994) was the 37th president of the United States, serving from 1969 to 1974. A member of the Republican Party, he previously served as a representative and senator from California and was t ...

president President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) * President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese f ...

in 1968. He had been

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

Republican state chair (1949–1965) and was a delegate to

Republican National Convention The Republican National Convention (RNC) is a series of presidential nominating conventions held every four years since 1856 by the United States Republican Party. They are administered by the Republican National Committee. The goal of the Repu ...

from Ohio in 1952, 1956, 1960, 1964, 1972. In his reflections on the Campaign of 1960, then Vice President Richard Nixon, described Ray Bliss as, "one of the best political craftsman of the nation." Nixon attributed his success amongst Democratic and independent voters in Ohio to Bliss' belief in the "simple axiom that it is the responsibility of a party chairman 'not to eliminate but to assimilate.'" Bliss was an

Akron, Ohio Akron () is the fifth-largest city in the U.S. state of Ohio and is the county seat of Summit County. It is located on the western edge of the Glaciated Allegheny Plateau, about south of downtown Cleveland. As of the 2020 Census, the city ...

native and 1935 graduate of the

University of Akron The University of Akron is a public research university in Akron, Ohio. It is part of the University System of Ohio. As a STEM-focused institution, it focuses on industries such as polymers, advanced materials, and engineering. It is classified ...

where he was initiated as a member of

Phi Kappa Tau Phi Kappa Tau (), commonly known as Phi Tau (), is a collegiate fraternity located in the United States. The fraternity was founded in 1906. As of November 2022, the fraternity has 161 chartered chapters, 79 active chapters, 6 Associate chapte ...

fraternity. Bliss is the namesake of the

Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics The Ray C. Bliss Institute of Applied Politics is a nonpartisan research and educational organization located at the University of Akron in Akron, OH. The Bliss Institute, founded in 1986, is named for Ray C. Bliss, University of Akron alumnus, un ...

established in 1986 at the

to promote citizen knowledge and participation in the political process, values in which Bliss strongly believed. Bliss served over nine years on the University of Akron board of trustees and was chair of the board at the time of his death.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bliss, Ray 1907 births 1981 deaths Ohio Republicans Politicians from Akron, Ohio Republican National Committee chairs State political party chairs of Ohio University of Akron alumni 20th-century American Episcopalians