Florida's 8th congressional district is an electoral district for the U.S. Congress and was reassigned in 2012,effective January 2013,from the inland central part of Florida to the central Atlantic coast. The district includes Titusville,Melbourne,Cocoa,and Cape Canaveral,Florida. The district includes all of Brevard County,as well as all of Indian River County and parts of Orange County. The district also includes the Kennedy Space Center.
The Board of County Commissioners (BCC) is the governing body of Orange County,Florida. It runs in the manner of a county commission. It has six seats held by elected officials called "County Commissioners",each commissioner in charge of their own District,led by a separate mayor of Orange County.
Bryan Nelson is a Florida-based politician,serving as Mayor of Apopka since 2018. A Republican,he was a member of the Florida House of Representatives,representing the 31st District,which includes the cities of Apopka,Eustis,Mount Dora,Tavares,and Umatilla in northern Lake County and northern Orange County,since 2012. He served on the Orange County Commission for District 2 from 2014 until March 2018 when he won election for mayor of Apopka after support for the previous mayor deteriorated.
Geraldine Fortenberry Thompson is an American politician and member of the Democratic Party,who currently serves as a member of the Florida State Senate from the 15th district.
Scott Allen Randolph is a Democratic politician who has served as the Orange County Tax Collector since 2013. Prior to his election as Tax Collector,he served as a member of the Florida House of Representatives,representing the 36th District from 2006 to 2012.
Dorothy L. Hukill was an American politician who was a Republican member in the Florida Senate who represented parts of the Volusia County area from 2012 until her death in 2018. She represented the 14th district,encompassing southern Volusia and northern Brevard Counties,since 2016,after being redistricted from the 8th district,which included parts of Volusia,Lake,and Marion Counties. She also served in the Florida House of Representatives,representing the 28th district in southern Volusia from 2004 to 2012.
Thad Altman is a Republican politician who served as a member of the Florida House of Representatives,representing parts of the Melbourne area in central Brevard County since 2016. Previously,he represented a similar area in the House from 2003 to 2008,and served in the Florida Senate from 2008 to 2016.
Suzanne Kosmas is the former U.S. Representative for Florida's 24th congressional district,serving one term from 2009 until 2011. She is a member of the Democratic Party. She previously served in the Florida House of Representatives.
Ritch Workman is a former Republican member of the Florida House of Representatives,who represented the 52nd District,which includes southern Brevard County,stretching from Melbourne to Palm Shores,from 2012 to 2016,and previously representing the 30th District from 2008 to 2012.
Kelli Stargel is an American politician who is a former Republican member of the Florida State Senate,representing the Lakeland area from 2012–2022. She has represented the 22nd district,encompassing northern Polk and southern Lake Counties,since 2016,after being redistricted from the 15th district. She previously served two terms in the Florida House of Representatives,representing northern Polk from 2008 to 2012.
Andy Gardiner is a Republican politician who served as a member of the Florida Senate,representing the 9th District from 2008 to 2012,and the 13th District,which stretches from Orlando to Titusville,from 2012 to 2016. From 2014 to 2016,Gardiner served as the President of the Florida Senate. Prior to Gardiner's election to the Senate,he served in the Florida House of Representatives,representing the 40th District from 2000 to 2008.
David H. Simmons is a Republican politician from Florida. He represented parts of Greater Orlando in the Florida Senate from 2010 to 2020,and in the Florida House of Representatives from 2000 to 2008.
Bruce Hadley Antone is an American politician from Florida. A Democrat,he served in the Florida House of Representatives from 2002 to 2006,from 2012 to 2020,and again from 2022,representing parts of Orlando in Orange County.
Valdez Venita Demings is an American politician and former police officer who served as U.S. representative for Florida's 10th congressional district from 2017 to 2023. The district covered most of the western half of Orlando and includes much of the area around Orlando's resort parks. It includes many of Orlando's western suburbs,including Apopka and Winter Garden. From 2007 to 2011,Demings served as the first female chief of the Orlando Police Department,closing a 27-year career in law enforcement. She has also been first lady of Orange County,Florida,since December 4,2018,when her husband Jerry Demings was sworn in as County Mayor.
Randolph Bracy III is an American politician who was a member of the Florida Senate from the 11th district. Bracy's district included parts of central and northwest Orange County. Bracy was the first African American to serve as Chair of the Criminal Justice Committee. As a member of the State Senate,Bracy pushed for the establishment of Juneteenth as a state holiday.
The 2016 United States House of Representatives elections in Florida were held on Tuesday,November 8,2016,to elect the 27 U.S. representatives from the state of Florida,one from each of the state's 27 congressional districts. The elections coincided with the elections of other federal and state offices,including President of the United States.
Carlos Guillermo Smith is an American community activist,lobbyist,and Democratic politician. He is a member of the Florida Senate from the 17th district since 2024,covering much of Orange County east of I-4,having been elected without opposition upon the qualifying deadline on June 14th. He previously served as a member of the Florida House of Representatives from District 49,situated in northeastern Orange County from 2016 through 2022,which covered the University of Central Florida area,Alafaya,Goldenrod,Union Park,Rio Pinar,and Waterford Lakes.
Robert B. "Bob" Sindler is a Democratic politician who served in the Florida House of Representatives from 1988 to 1998,and who served on the Orange County Commission from 1998 to 2006. He is currently a candidate for the Florida Senate in 2016.
The 2010 Orange County,Florida mayoral election took place on November 2,2010. Incumbent Republican Mayor Richard Crotty was unable to seek re-election due to term limits,and four candidates ran to replace him. A nonpartisan primary election was held on August 24,2010,but because no candidate won a majority of the vote,former County Commissioner Teresa Jacobs,a Republican,advanced to a runoff election against fellow County Commissioner Bill Segal,a Democrat. Following a contentious general election,Jacobs was elected Mayor over Segal in a landslide,winning her first term 68–32.
The 2022 elections for the Florida State Senate took place on Tuesday,November 8,2022,to elect state senators from all 40 districts. Although on ordinary years,20 senators are elected at a time on a staggered basis,races following redistricting elect all 40 members to ensure that each member represents an equal number of constituents. The Republican Party expanded their Senate majority from 24 to 28,gaining a supermajority in the Senate. The concurrently held House elections also resulted in a supermajority,giving Republicans supermajority control of the legislature.
