The Florida Legislature is the legislature of the U.S. state of Florida. It is organized as a bicameral body composed of an upper chamber, the Senate, and a lower chamber, the House of Representatives. Article III, Section 1 of the Florida Constitution, adopted in 1968, defines the role of the legislature and how it is to be constituted. The legislature is composed of 160 state legislators. The primary purpose of the legislature is to enact new laws and amend or repeal existing laws. It meets in the Florida State Capitol building in Tallahassee.
Eugene Clay Shaw Jr. was an American jurist and Republican politician who served as mayor of Fort Lauderdale and represented South Florida in the United States House of Representatives from 1981 until 2007. He was defeated for re-election by Ron Klein in 2006.
Anitere Flores is a Republican politician from Miami, Florida. She served three terms in the Florida House of Representatives from 2004 to 2010. Subsequently, she served in the Florida Senate from 2010 to 2020. In the 2016–18 legislative session, Flores served as president pro tempore of the Senate.
Tom Lee is an American Republican politician from Florida. He represented parts of the Tampa area in the Florida Senate from 1996 to 2006, and again from 2012 to 2020. He served as Senate President from 2004 to 2006. He was the Republican nominee for Chief Financial Officer of Florida in 2006, but lost to Democratic nominee Alex Sink.
Arthenia Joyner is an American politician, attorney, and civil rights activist from Florida. She served as a member of the Florida Senate for ten years, representing parts of the Tampa Bay Area from 2006 to 2016. She was the Senate minority leader during her last two years in office. Prior to being elected to the Senate, Joyner served three terms in the Florida House of Representatives, representing an eastern Tampa-based district from 2000 to 2006. Currently, Joyner is Of Counsel with the Swope, Rodante P.A. law firm located in Ybor City, FL.
Matt Hudson is an American politician and businessman who served as a Republican member of the Florida House of Representatives from 2008 to 2012 and again from 2012 to 2016.
Kelly Skidmore is a politician who served as a member of the Florida House of Representatives, representing the 90th District, from 2006 to 2008. A Democrat, she ran unsuccessfully for the Florida Senate in 2010 and again for the Florida House in 2016.
Denise Grimsley is a Republican member of the Florida State Senate, representing parts of Central and Southwest Florida since 2012. She has represented the 26th district, which includes Highlands, Okeechobee, Glades, DeSoto, Hardee, southern Polk, eastern Charlotte, and northern Lee Counties, since 2016, after being redistricted from the 21st district. She served four terms in the Florida House of Representatives, representing the Highlands County-based 77th district from 2004 to 2012.
Kevin Rader is an American politician from Florida. A Democrat, he represented parts of northern Broward and southern Palm Beach Counties in the Florida House from 2008 to 2010 and again from 2012 to 2016. He was elected to one term in the Florida Senate, serving from 2016 until he retired in 2020.
Ed Hooper is a Republican member of the Florida Senate, representing the 21st District, which includes Clearwater and Largo in northern Pinellas County and western Pasco County, since 2018.
Lizbeth Benacquisto is a Republican politician from Florida who served as a member of the Florida Senate from 2010 to 2020. She was a candidate in the 2014 special election for Florida's 19th congressional district.
Garrett Richter is a Republican politician from Florida. He served as a member of the Florida Senate from 2008 to 2016, representing parts of Collier and Lee Counties in Southwest Florida. Prior to being elected to the Senate, Richter served one term in the Florida House of Representatives, representing a Naples-based district from 2006 to 2008.
Jeanette Marie Nuñez is an American businesswoman and politician serving as the 20th lieutenant governor of Florida since 2019. A member of the Republican Party, she represented Miami-Dade County in the Florida House of Representatives from 2010 to 2018, also serving as speaker pro tempore for her final two years in the office. Nuñez is the first Latina to serve as Florida lieutenant governor.
Lori Berman is a Democratic member of the Florida Senate, representing parts of central Palm Beach County since being elected in an April 2018 special election. She previously served four terms in the Florida House of Representatives from 2010 until her election to the Senate.
Linda Stewart is a Democratic member of the Florida Senate, representing the 13th district, which includes northeast and central Orange County, since 2016. She previously served one term in the Florida House of Representatives, representing central Orange County from 2012 to 2014.
Michael J. Grant is an American Republican politician who serves as the Majority Leader of the Florida House of Representatives. He has represented Florida's 75th district since 2016. From 2004 to 2008, he represented the 71st district.
In the elections to the Florida State Senate that were held on November 6, 2018, 20 of the 40 seats were contested in regular elections and two seats in special elections. The winners of the 20 regular elections will serve four year terms from November 6, 2018, to November 6, 2022, and the winners of the two special elections will serve two year terms from November 6, 2018, to November 6, 2020.
Ana Maria Rodriguez is a Republican member of the Florida Senate, representing the 40th district encompassing Monroe and parts of Miami-Dade Counties since 2020.
Janegale M. Boyd is a Democratic politician who served as a member of the Florida House of Representatives from 1996 to 2000. She unsuccessfully ran for the Florida Senate in 2000, losing the Democratic primary to Al Lawson.
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.
