Gordon M. Nelson

Gordon M. Nelson was an American political activist who served as chairman of the Massachusetts Republican State Committee from 1976 to 1980.

Nelson was born on August 18, 1941 in Brookline, Massachusetts. He graduated from Newton High School and attended Harvard University, but dropped out to get involved in politics.

Nelson first became involved in politics in 1964 when he worked for Barry Goldwater's Presidential campaign. He was also a founder and executive director of the Massachusetts chapter of Young Americans for Freedom. After Goldwater's loss, Nelson stated out of politics for five years, but returned to oppose the policies of Governor Francis W. Sargent. In 1974 he worked for Sargent's Republican primary opponent, Carroll Sheehan. In February 1975 he formed Republicans for an Effective Grass Roots Organization (REGRO), a grassroots organization that sought to attract disenchanted Democrats to the Republican Party.

In 1972 Nelson directed Richard M. Nixon's canvassing efforts in Massachusetts. In 1976 he was a leader in Massachusetts in Ronald Reagan's campaign against incumbent President Gerald Ford for the GOP Presidential nomination. In 1980 he and William Weld were co-chairmen for Congressman's Phil Crane's short-lived bid for the GOP Presidential nomination. Nelson would ultimately endorse Ronald Reagan.

On May 19, 1976, Nelson, backed by the conservative REGRO faction of the party, defeated Andrew Card, the consensus choice of the moderates, by two votes to become Chairman of the Republican State Committee. He was the first Jew elected to this position. Nelson was also a delegate to that year's Republican National Convention.

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