Robert Graham "Bob" Beverly (July 1, 1925 – October 14, 2009) was an American attorney and politician from California and a member of the Republican Party.
Early life
Robert Graham Beverly was born July 1, 1925, in Belmont, Massachusetts, as an only child to William Beverly and the former Helen Graham. His father, who was in the insurance business, died when Beverly was a teenager.
Beverly met his future wife in high school. He followed her to Los Angeles, and they were married in 1946. After serving in the Marine Corps, mainly on the East Coast, Beverly attended UCLA, then earned a law degree at Loyola Marymount University in the early 1950s. He then moved to Manhattan Beach and started practicing law.
Political career
In 1958, Beverly launched his political career, winning a seat on the Manhattan Beach City Council. He served for nine years, including three terms as mayor.
In 1967, Beverly won a special election to the California State Assembly. The 46th district was vacant due to the death of veteran incumbent Charles Edward Chapel. He was reelected four more times with relative ease (1967-76), serving as minority leader from 1973 until 1976.
He left the assembly in 1976 to challenge state senator James Wedworth (D-Hawthorne) in a district that had been redrawn due to reapportionment. Beverly won easily, defeating the incumbent by more than 23 points. He then had little trouble holding the seat (numbered both the 27th and the 29th during his tenure) until 1992, when he won a surprisingly close race against an unknown, underfunded Democrat in a district that had been redrawn after the 1991 reapportionment.https://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=369578
He retired from elective office in 1996, though he did serve briefly on the state Lottery Commission from 1997 to 1998.
Death
On October 14, 2009, Beverly died of complications from Parkinson's disease in Manhattan Beach, California.
Electoral history
+ Member, California State Assembly: 1967–1976 Member, California State Senate : 1976–1996YearOfficeDemocratVotesPctRepublicanVotesPct1967California State Assembly District 46J. O. "Lee" Solomon7,54524.4%Robert Beverly23,33475.6%1968California State Assembly District 46James Roberts26,72923.9%Robert Beverly82,38273.8%1970California State Assembly District 46Steve Nordeck29,84229.1%Robert Beverly70,40468.7%1972California State Assembly District 46Jack Halloway34,54925.8%Robert Beverly93,24669.7%1974California State Assembly District 51Betty Brennan28,14234.6%Robert Beverly53,18564.5%1976California State Senate District 27James Wedworth70,45738.7%Robert Beverly111,58861.3%1980California State Senate District 27Dave Buckland38,87921.1%Robert Beverly132,25371.7%1984California State Senate District 29Suzanne Distaso67,72926.6%Robert Beverly177,27269.7%1988California State Senate District 29Jack Hachmeister75,34529.3%Robert Beverly178,13167.4%1992California State Senate District 27Brian Finander123,95645.4%Robert Beverly129,01047.3%
References
External links JoinCalifornia, Election History for the State of California