Lem T. Jones Jr.

Lemuel Theophilus Jones Jr. (March 15, 1924 – December 17, 1995) was an American politician in the state of Missouri. He served in the Missouri State Senate as a Republican from 1965 to 1975.^[1]

Lem T. Jones Jr.
Member of the Missouri Senate from the 10th district
In office 1965–1975
Personal details
Born	Lemuel Theophilus Jones Jr. (1924-03-15)March 15, 1924 Chicago, Illinois, U.S.
Died	December 17, 1995(1995-12-17) (aged 71) Kansas City, Missouri, U.S.
Political party	Republican
Spouse	Laverne Boes
Children	2
Education	University of Iowa (LLB)
Occupation	Politician lawyer
Military service
Branch/service	United States Navy
Years of service	1942–1947 (active)
Rank	Lieutenant commander
Battles/wars	World War II

Early life

Lemuel Theophilus Jones Jr. was born on March 15, 1924, to Lemuel and Jessie Jones in Chicago, Illinois. They moved to Kansas City, Missouri in his childhood, where Jones attended local schools, including Southwest High School, Kansas City Junior College, and the University of Kansas. After graduating, Jones was commissioned as an officer in the United States Navy, where he served as a pilot during World War II, reaching the rank of Lieutenant Commander.

After the war, he attended the University of Iowa, studying for his LLB. There, he married Laverne Boes, and the two would go on to have two children, David and Marcia. He then moved back to Kansas City and started a law practice, where he entered local politics with the Republican Party.^[2]

Political career

Jones' first foray into politics was when he ran for U.S. Congress in 1956 from Missouri's 5th congressional district, but he lost the election to Richard W. Bolling.^[3] Despite his loss, he persisted in local politics, serving on the Jackson County Republican Committee from 1962 to 1964 and the St. Louis 9th Ward Republican Committee from 1962 to 1966. He then was elected to the State Senate in a special election taking place in the 10th district.^[4] He was re-elected in 1966 and 1970 but lost his bid for a third term to Democrat Harry Wiggins in 1974.

In 1968, Jones ran for Lieutenant Governor of Missouri, winning the Republican primary with 55 percent of the vote. However, he lost the general election to Democrat William S. Morris.^[5]

Later life

After leaving office, Jones returned to private life. He was as a trustee of Research Medical Center from 1957 to 1991 and a Chairman of the Board of the Research Medical Center College of Nursing until his retirement in 1994. He was also a founder and Chairman of the Board of CGI Long Distance Company, headquartered in Mission, Kansas. He died on December 17, 1995, at age 71. He was interred at Mount Moriah Cemetery in Kansas City, Missouri.

Electoral history

Missouri's 5th congressional district: 1956 Republican primary^[6]

Year		Subject	Votes	%		Opponent	Votes	%		Opponent	Votes	%
1956		Lem T. Jones	7,605	72.71		Kenneth Dickey	1,983	57.22		Elizabeth B. Caulk	872	8.34

Missouri's 5th congressional district: Results 1956^[7]

Year		Subject	Party	Votes	%		Opponent	Party	Votes	%
1956		Lem T. Jones	Republican	57,778	42.78		Richard W. Bolling (inc.)	Democratic	77,287	57.22

Missouri's 10th State Senate district: August 1965 special election^[8]

Year		Subject	Party	Votes	%		Opponent	Party	Votes	%
1965		Lem T. Jones	Republican	9,895	59.27		John P. Ryan	Democratic	6,800	40.73

Missouri's 10th State Senate district: Results 1966-1974^[9]

Year		Subject	Party	Votes	%		Opponent	Party	Votes	%
1966		Lem T. Jones	Republican	18,271	53.02		John A. Biersmith	Democratic	16,189	46.98
1970		Lem T. Jones (inc.)	Republican	22,004	55.12		Reynolds D. Rodgers	Democratic	17,918	44.88
1974		Lem T. Jones (inc.)	Republican	14,967	40.56		Harry Wiggins	Democratic	21,931	59.44

Missouri Lieutenant Governor: 1968 Republican primary^[10]

Year		Subject	Votes	%		Opponent	Votes	%		Opponent	Votes	%
1968		Lem T. Jones	115,179	55.91		George R. Hart	69,978	33.97		James Pirtle	20,858	10.13

Missouri Lieutenant Governor: Results 1968^[11]

Year		Subject	Party	Votes	%		Opponent	Party	Votes	%
1968		Lem T. Jones	Republican	733,850	43.03		William S. Morris	Democratic	971,684	56.97

References

1. "Official Manual of the State of Missouri 1969 - 1970 :: Official Manual of the State of Missouri -The Blue Book". Archived from the original on July 14, 2015. Retrieved July 14, 2015.
2. "Official Manual of the State of Missouri 1967 - 1968", mdh.contentdm.oclc.org, retrieved August 31, 2022
3. "MO District 5", OurCampaigns, retrieved August 31, 2022
4. "Official Manual of the State of Missouri 1967 - 1968", mdh.contentdm.oclc.org, retrieved August 31, 2022
5. "Jones, Jr., Lem T.", OurCampaigns, retrieved August 31, 2022
6. "MO District 5 - R Primary", OurCampaigns, retrieved August 31, 2022
7. "MO District 5", OurCampaigns, retrieved August 31, 2022
8. "MO State Senate 10 - Special Election", OurCampaigns, retrieved August 31, 2022
9. "Jones Jr., Lem T.", OurCampaigns, retrieved August 31, 2022
10. "MO Lt. Governor - R Primary", OurCampaigns, retrieved August 31, 2022
11. "MO District 5", OurCampaigns, retrieved August 31, 2022

Party political offices
Preceded by Jewett M. Fulkerson	Republican nominee for Lieutenant Governor of Missouri 1968	Succeeded by Bill Phelps