Tom Fuentes

Chairman of the Republican Party of Orange County from 1985 to 2004, Fuentes helped the party maintain its powerhouse status while boosting several candidates to victory. In the mid-1990s, Republicans held all of the county's legislative and congressional seats, cementing a reputation as one of the most Republican counties in the nation. Fuentes' hard-line social conservatism and abrasive style began to alienate some former allies, including wealthy Republican business executives who sought more moderate candidates and a change in leadership. Fuentes was president of the Republican club at Chapman College, where he received a bachelor's degree in government. He worked as an aide to then-county Supervisor Ronald Caspers, who drowned with 10 others in 1974 when his sailboat sank, a trip that Fuentes had planned to take. A lifelong Catholic, Fuentes briefly entered a seminary to study for the priesthood but returned to Orange County to work for an engineering firm. He supported several charitable causes and helped found the Second Harvest Food Bank of Orange County. He also served as a spokesman for the Diocese of Orange. Fuentes is survived by his wife, Jolene; daughter Michelle; sons Thomas Jr. (T.J.) and Joey; brother Robert; and sister Martha Dempsey.