Raymond P. Shafer

In 1962, Republican gubernatorial candidate Bill Scranton tapped Shafer as his running mate. Scranton had been Shafer's classmate at Yale, and both were considered moderate Republicans. The Scranton/Shafer ticket won the election over the Democratic ticket led by Philadelphia Mayor Richardson Dilworth and State Representative Stephen McCann, the House Majority Leader.[2]

Scranton was limited to one term under then-existing state law and Shafer was considered the most likely choice to succeed him as the Republican nominee. In the general election, he faced wealthy Philadelphia businessman Milton Shapp. The 1966 election was marked by tragedies. Pennsylvania Attorney General Walter Alessandroni, Shafer's running mate, was killed in an aviation accident during the campaign[9] and won the nomination for Lieutenant Governor posthumously; Ray Broderick was named to replace him on the ticket.[2] Former governor David L. Lawrence collapsed and fell into a coma during a campaign appearance for Shapp, and died later that November.[10] On election day, Shafer was victorious by a margin of nearly a quarter of a million votes.[11]

Shafer was inaugurated in January 1967 and became the first governor to reside in the modern Governor's Mansion in Harrisburg. As governor, Shafer was best known for championing reforms to the state constitution. In 1963, Lieutenant Governor Shafer had chaired a bipartisan committee to explore constitutional reforms and had made reforms a part of his campaign platform in 1966. By the end of Shafer's first year as governor, in December 1967, a constitutional convention was meeting to overhaul state government. Reforms approved by the electorate following this convention, in April 1968, included revisions to home rule, audit of state finances, and a new unified judiciary under the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania.[2]

Shafer emerged as a national figure in the moderate wing of the Republican Party during the 1968 election, giving the nominating speech for New York Governor Nelson Rockefeller at the 1968 Republican National Convention, although the delegates instead chose former Vice President Richard Nixon as the party's presidential candidate.[12][13] Shafer himself had received votes in Pennsylvania's presidential primary and initially received support from a majority of Pennsylvania's 64-member convention delegation as a favorite son candidate;[14] he used this leverage in a partially successful attempt to move the Pennsylvania delegation into Rockefeller's column.[15] After Shafer's death, his surviving children told The New York Times that Nixon had offered Shafer the vice presidential spot to balance the ticket with an Eastern moderate, though there is no surviving record to that effect. Nixon ultimately chose Maryland governor Spiro Agnew.[16]

Shafer oversaw an expansion of Pennsylvania's highway system, dedicated several portions of the Interstate Highway System in the state, and authorized a merger of four agencies to form the Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT). Large expenditures for education and health programs Shafer authorized caused budget deficits by the 1969–70 fiscal year. To balance the budget, Shafer sought Pennsylvania's first state income tax, a move that made him unpopular with many voters, though later settled for an increase in the state sales tax.[2] Ultimately, Shafer's successor as governor, Milton Shapp, would sign into law a state income tax.[17] Shafer also dealt with the 1969 York Race Riot in which Shafer declared a state of emergency and sent 200 National Guard troops into the city.[18] In 1969, Shafer ascended to the vice-chairmanship of the Republican Governors Association and succeeded California governor Ronald Reagan as chair in 1970.[2]

Although the new 1968 constitution allowed incumbent governors to run for reelection, Shafer was bound by the previous rules and was limited to one term. He campaigned for Ray Broderick, his lieutenant governor, as his successor. Although Broderick publicly opposed a state income tax, he was unable to escape the shadow of Shafer, who had proposed it. The 1970 election saw a Democratic sweep, with Milton Shapp elected governor and Democrats gaining control of both houses of the General Assembly for the first time in over 30 years. Shafer left office following the expiration of his term and inauguration of governor-elect Shapp in January 1971.[2]

After leaving state government, Shafer had initially hoped to be appointed to a federal judgeship on the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, though he ultimately did not receive an appointment and withdrew his candidacy for the bench in 1972. In the meantime, President Nixon appointed Shafer as chairman of the National Commission on Marijuana and Drug Abuse, also known as the Shafer Commission.[19] He was criticized in this role by many conservatives after the panel recommended the decriminalization of marijuana use. The commission's recommendation was ultimately not followed by the Nixon administration,[19] though some, such as Eric Sterling of HuffPost, argue that the proposal was "ahead of its time."[20]

Later, Shafer served a brief stint as CEO of financially troubled TelePrompter company. Following Watergate, he returned to public service after being named special counsel to new Vice President Nelson Rockefeller, a position he held from 1974 to 1977.[19] From 1977 to 1988 he was a partner and senior counselor with the accounting firm of Coopers & Lybrand and also maintained a law practice in Meadville. He served briefly as president of his alma mater, Allegheny College, from 1985 to 1986,[3] and on the Council on Foreign Relations. Shafer died at the age of 89 in Meadville, Pennsylvania, on December 12, 2006. He was buried with military honors at St. John's Cemetery in Union Township, Crawford County, Pennsylvania.[12]

Shafer was awarded an honorary Doctor of Laws degree from Drexel University in 1968.[5] In addition, a section of Interstate 79 in Pennsylvania is named "The Raymond P. Shafer Highway" after him, as are residence halls at Edinboro University of Pennsylvania and Indiana University of Pennsylvania and the auditorium at Allegheny College.[2] Pennsylvania House Bill 1652 of 2011, introduced by Democratic State Rep. Mark B. Cohen, and Pennsylvania Senate Bill 1003 of 2011, introduced by Democratic State Senator Daylin Leach, are both named "The Governor Raymond P. Shafer Compassionate Use Medical Marijuana Act."[21]