Ray, Robert D.

Ray, Robert D.

(1928– ) governor; born in Des Moines, Iowa. An army veteran and lawyer, he chaired Iowa's Republican Party (1963–68). As governor of Iowa (1969–83), he funded state university construction, established an environmental agency, and reformed the state's judicial system. As governor of a major grain-producing state, he protested President Carter's decision to cancel grain shipments to the U.S.S.R. to protest the invasion of Afghanistan. On leaving office he joined a Cedar Rapids insurance company.