Unformatted text preview: POLITICS IN FLORIDA
FIFTH EDITION SUSAN A. MACMANUS
Distinguished University Professor Emerita
University of South Florida AUBREY JEWETT
Associate Professor
University of Central Florida DAVID J. BONANZA
Research Analyst THOMAS R. DYE
Emeritus McKenzie Professor of Government
Florida State University RESEARCH ASSOCIATES
Amy N. Benner
Anthony A. Cilluffo
Giselle Vazquez-Soto i This page intentionally left blank for copyright information. ii Preface
POLITICS IN FLORIDA highlights Florida’s fast ascension onto the national political stage and its emergence
as one of the nation’s premier battleground states. It shows how Florida has become the microcosm of
America in the 21st century in its demographics, population make-up, and its politics. The state is at the
forefront of the nation’s changing political culture—an ever more mobile American people, an aging
population, the rise of generational politics, an ethnically and racially more diverse society, and an
electorate ever more dependent on the media of mass communication. Most Florida voters come from
someplace else. They have no deep roots in the state. They are aptly described as an “electorate of
visitors.” Even if they know the state capital is Tallahassee, not Miami, they are unlikely to know much
about what goes on there.
POLITICS IN FLORIDA is the most comprehensive analysis of government, politics, and public affairs in the
Sunshine State. It is complete with data-driven graphics, tables, and analyses detailing changes in the
state’s:
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● Population composition.
Political party makeup.
Voting patterns broken down by party affiliation, voter demographics, and geographical location.
Voter turnout rates.
Election laws, voting rights, voting procedures, and equipment.
Constitution, via constitutional amendments.
Elected officials--party, gender and race/ethnicity; governor, U.S. senators, congress members,
Cabinet officers, state legislators, justices and judges.
Economy and its key sectors.
Powerful interest groups and media markets.
Major public policy responsibilities--crime and corrections, taxation and budget, education, social
welfare, health care, the environment, growth management, economic development, and
transportation. It provides in-depth analyses of presidential races in Florida beginning with the 2000 election,
gubernatorial races since 1966, and U.S. Senate races since 1968. Changes in the partisan makeup of
Florida’s congressional delegation and the state Senate and House are highlighted as well.
POLITICS IN FLORIDA is designed to be nonpartisan, informative, and descriptive. It summarizes the political
culture of the state, prevailing public opinion, the state’s constitution, political parties, power centers and
interest groups, legislative affairs in Tallahassee, redistricting and reapportionment, the roles of the
governor and cabinet, the law enforcement and judicial systems, the financing of government, and city,
county, school district, and special district government in the state.
SUSAN A. MACMANUS
AUBREY JEWETT
DAVID J. BONANZA
THOMAS R. DYE iii About the Authors
SUSAN A. MACMANUS, a native of Pasco County, is a University of South Florida Distinguished University Professor
Emerita, former Director of the USF-Nielsen Sunshine State Survey, and recipient of an Outstanding Undergraduate
Teaching Award. She is the author of Young v. Old: Generational Combat in the 21st Century (Westview Press 1996),
Targeting Senior Voters: Campaign Outreach to Elders and Others With Special Needs, (Rowman & Littlefield, 2000),
Florida’s Minority Trailblazers: The Men and Women Who Changed the Face of Florida Government (University Press
of Florida, 2017), and co-author with Thomas R. Dye of Politics in States and Communities, 15th ed. (Prentice-Hall,
2015). MacManus edited two books on redistricting in Florida: Mapping Florida’s Political Landscape: The Changing
Art & Politics of Reapportionment & Redistricting (Florida Institute of Government, 2002); Reapportionment and
Representation in Florida: A Historical Collection (University of South Florida Innovation Institute, 1991). She coedited (with Kevin Hill and Dario Moreno) and contributed to Florida Politics: Ten Media Markets, One Powerful State
(Florida Institute of Government, 2004). With her mother Elizabeth Riegler MacManus, she co-authored Citrus,
Sawmills, Critters, & Crackers: Early Life in Lutz and Central Pasco County (University of Tampa Press, 1998) and
Going, Going, Almost Gone: Lutz-Land O’ Lakes Pioneers Share their Precious Memories (University of Tampa Press,
2011). MacManus served as Chair of the Florida Elections Commission from 1999 to 2003 and is past president of
the Florida Political Science Association, the Southern Political Science Association, and the Urban Politics Section of
the American Political Science Association. She was a Fulbright Research Scholar at Yonsei University, Seoul, South
Korea, 1988. MacManus has been a long-time political analyst for various TV and radio outlets in the state and a
featured columnist for Sayfie Review—a popular Florida political website.
AUBREY JEWETT received his Ph.D. from Florida State University. He is currently Associate Professor of Political Science
at the University of Central Florida (UCF). His main research and teaching interests are in American national, state
and local politics with a special emphasis on Florida. In September 2002 Professor Jewett received the Leon Weaver
Award for his study of ballot invalidation in Florida during the 2000 presidential election. He authored the chapter
on central Florida politics in the edited volume Florida Politics: Ten Media Markets, One Powerful State and the
chapter on Florida county government structure in the Florida Association of Counties’ Florida County Government
Guide. He is co-editor of the book Political Rules of the Road: Representatives, Senators and Presidents Share Their
Rules for Success in Congress, Politics, and Life. Most recently, he published chapters in Florida and the 2016 Election
of Donald J. Trump and The Future Ain’t What is Used to Be: The 2016 Presidential Election in the South. Professor
Jewett has helped to bring in over $1 million of external funding to UCF. He has won multiple awards for teaching
and advising excellence and professional service. Professor Jewett was also selected and served as an American
Political Science Association Congressional Fellow. He supervised the department internship program for over ten
years and placed over 1,400 University of Central Florida political science students at various local, state, and
national sites. State, national, and international media frequently cite Jewett’s analysis of Florida politics.
DAVID J. BONANZA graduated from the University of South Florida with a Bachelor of Science summa cum laude in
business economics. His professional experience includes analytical roles with Fortune 100 companies in the banking
and telecommunications industries. His research focuses primarily on the interaction between economics and
politics. He has coauthored chapters in Larry Sabato’s Pendulum Swing (2011) and The Year of Obama (2009) and
assisted with other publications, including a featured column for Sayfie Review. He currently teaches statistics,
macroeconomics, and computer science.
THOMAS R. DYE, retired McKenzie Professor of Government at Florida State University, is now Professor Emeritus
living in West Palm Beach. He is the author of Politics in America, 11th ed. (Prentice Hall, 2017); Understanding Public
Policy, 15th ed. (Prentice Hall, 2016); Who’s Running America? The Obama Reign, 8th ed. (Paradigm, 2014); Politics
in States and Communities (co-author) 15th ed. (Prentice Hall, 2015), and numerous other books and articles on
public affairs. He has served as president of the Southern Political Science Association and secretary of the American
Political Science Association. He has received national awards from the Policy Studies Organization, the Southern
Political Science Association, and the Florida Political Science Association. He was recognized as an Outstanding
Alumnus of the College of Liberal Arts at Penn State University. iv Acknowledgements
The authors wish to thank the many individuals who helped make the fifth edition a reality.
For the cover design: Mike Rycko, IT and Marketing Coordinator, John Scott Dailey Florida Institute of
Government at Florida State University.
For photographs: Sarasota County and Polk County governments, the Florida Department of State, State
Library & Archives of Florida, Leadership Florida, Edward Briggs, Orange County Supervisor of Elections
Ron Turner, Florida Today newspaper, Volunteer Florida (Florida Commission on Community Service), and
Dr. Susan A. MacManus.
For sharing invaluable research findings and graphics, the John Scott Dailey Florida Institute of
Government at the University of South Florida, The Nielsen Company, the LeRoy Collins Institute at Florida
State University, the University of North Florida’s Public Opinion Research Laboratory, Florida
International University’s Cuban Research Institute, the University of Florida’s Survey Research Center,
Enterprise Florida, the Florida Association of Counties, the Florida League of Cities, Inc., Florida TaxWatch,
Florida Trend magazine, the James Madison Institute, Leadership Florida, Florida Policy Institute, The Tax
Foundation, Pew Research Center, and four county supervisors of elections (Susan Gill, Citrus County;
Brian Corley, Pasco County; Bill Cowles, Orange County; and Craig Latimer, Hillsborough County).
We also want to thank the late J. Stanley Marshall, Founding Chairman of the James Madison Institute, a
nonpartisan nonprofit research and educational organization chartered in 1987, for a grant supporting
the first edition.
The three Research Assistants were invaluable in locating, analyzing, and formatting new materials in this
edition. All have a University of South Florida connection. Amy Benner and Anthony Cilluffo are both
graduates and now engaged in graduate study (Amy—Ph.D. program in political science at Rutgers
University, Anthony—graduate program in public policy at Princeton University). Giselle Vazquez-Soto is
an undergraduate at USF majoring in accounting.
Finally, we are grateful to the nonprofit John Scott Dailey Florida Institute of Government at Florida State
University for publishing this book as part of its educational mission. We particularly want to thank Dr.
Dena Hurst, Researcher, of the Institute who was supportive of our updating of this book from start to
finish. We also want to thank Angela Crist, Director of the John Scott Daily Institute of Government at the
University of South Florida and Robyn Odegard, Learning and Development Facilitator, for all their support
of the Fourth Edition and for continuing to share outstanding results from the USF-Nielsen Sunshine State
Survey.
The data provided by each greatly enhance our understanding of Florida politics. However, the
interpretations of the data are solely those of the authors. v Table of Contents
Preface ................................................................................................................................................................. iii
About the Authors ................................................................................................................................................ iv
Acknowledgements ............................................................................................................................................... v
Table of Contents.................................................................................................................................................. vi
List of Figures ........................................................................................................................................................ ix
List of Tables ........................................................................................................................................................ xii
Chapter 1. Politics in the Sunshine State ................................................................................................................ 1
Florida: A Critical Battleground Swing State .............................................................................................................1
What Shapes Florida’s Politics? .................................................................................................................................2
Up-Close: A Short History of Florida ..........................................................................................................................3
Growth, Change, and Rootlessness ...........................................................................................................................6
Generational Politics in Florida................................................................................................................................15
Religion and Politics.................................................................................................................................................19
Racial and Ethnic Politics in Florida .........................................................................................................................19
African and Caribbean Americans in Florida Politics ...............................................................................................21
Up-Close: Righting the Wrongs of past discrimination............................................................................................23
Hispanic Politics: Cuban and Non-Cuban .................................................................................................................28
Native Americans in Florida Politics ........................................................................................................................35
Up-Close: Seminole Indians—What’s in a Name? ...................................................................................................39
The LGBTQ Community in Florida Politics................................................................................................................40
Florida’s Economy and Its Political Impact ..............................................................................................................41
Chapter 2. The Florida Constitution ..................................................................................................................... 50
“We the People of the State of Florida” ..................................................................................................................51
Up-Close: Florida’s Six Constitutions .......................................................................................................................53
Outline of the Florida Constitution ..........................................................................................................................54
Amending the Constitution......................................................................................................................................57
Direct versus Representative Democracy ................................................................................................................63
What Happens After an Amendment Passes? .........................................................................................................69
Florida’s Constitution: Vital to Our State’s Governance ..........................................................................................71
Chapter 3. Public Opinion in Florida ..................................................................................................................... 73
The Challenges of Assessing Public Opinion in Florida ............................................................................................73
Major Statewide Issue-Based Polling in Florida ......................................................................................................77
Declining Trust in Government ................................................................................................................................78
Explaining the Decline in Trust ................................................................................................................................78
Ideology in Florida: Conservative or Moderate? .....................................................................................................83
Florida’s Most Important Problems .........................................................................................................................84
Disaster Preparedness as an Important Issue .........................................................................................................89
Rating Government Performance ............................................................................................................................92
Following or Leading Public Opinion? .....................................................................................................................94
Measuring Consumer Confidence in the Economy ..................................................................................................96
New Challenges for Polling ......................................................................................................................................97
Focus Groups: Another Way to Gauge Public Opinion ..........................................................................................100
The Public’s Opinions Matter, So Do Leaders’ Reactions to Them ........................................................................100
Chapter 4. Parties and Elections in Florida ......................................................................................................... 102
Transition from a One-Party State ........................................................................................................................102
The Functions of Parties ........................................................................................................................................103
Party Organizations ...............................................................................................................................................104
The Rise of Party Competition in Florida ...............................................................................................................105
Florida Elections: Complex, Volatile, and Unpredictable .......................................................................................112
Florida’s Election System: Reforms Are the Norm .................................................................................................122 vi Presidential Elections in Florida .............................................................................................................................128
Gubernatorial Races ..............................................................................................................................................139
U.S. Senate Races ..................................................................................................................................................152
The Cabinet............................................................................................................................................................161
U.S. Congressional Races .......................................................................................................................................163
State Legislative Races: Florida Senate and Florida House ...................................................................................166
Challenges for the Parties; Florida’s Bellw...
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