Raymond Bateman, American politician, Died at 88

  Politician

Raymond H. “Ray” Bateman was born on October 29, 1927, and died on June 25, 2016..
He was an American Republican Party politician.
Bateman represented Somerset County in the New Jersey Senate in the 1960s and 1970s and was the Republican candidate for Governor of New Jersey in 1977.
Raymond was the father of Christopher Bateman who now occupies the same Senate district he held.
Raymond Bateman served as executive director of the Republican State Committee from 1954 to 1958.
Bateman entered the New Jersey General Assembly in November 1958, serving as the lone Assemblyman from Somerset County (at the time, Assembly districts were apportioned by counties’ populations) going on to serve as assistant majority leader in 1964 and majority leader in 1965.
He had sponsored the 1962 legislation that established New Jersey’s county-based community college system.
In 1967, Raymond Bateman was elected to the New Jersey Senate and was reelected in 1971 from the 8th Legislative District which consisted of all of Somerset County.
Raymond Bateman served as assistant majority leader in 1968, majority leader in 1969, and Senate president and acting governor in 1970-1972.
During 1973, following the reconfiguration of all legislative districts, he was elected to serve in the Senate from the 16th District consisting of most of Somerset County and portions of Hunterdon and Morris counties.
He had five children with Joan Speer Bateman, whom he was married to until her death in 2003.
He died at Morristown Memorial Hospital after a shoulder break and pneumonia.
Raymond Bateman passed away at 88 yrs old.