Florida's 16th congressional district

"FL-16" redirects here. For the state road, see Florida State Road 16.

Florida's 16th congressional district
Current Representative		Vern Buchanan (R–Sarasota)
Cook PVI	R+5

Florida's 16th congressional district is a congressional district in the U.S. state of Florida. The district stretches from Bradenton to Venice, and includes the city of Sarasota.

The district from 2003 to 2013 stretched from the Gulf of Mexico to the Atlantic Coast and includes parts of Charlotte, Glades, Hendry, Highlands, Okeechobee, St. Lucie, Martin, and Palm Beach counties. Included within the district were Port Charlotte, Port St. Lucie, and Palm Beach.

The district is currently represented by Republican Vern Buchanan.

The district from 2003 to 2013

History

When the Florida legislature redistricted in 2002 after the 2000 U.S. Census, a federal court described the boundaries of the 16th Congressional District and the interlocking 23rd Congressional District as an example of gerrymandering and a "raw exercise of majority legislative power."

Voting

Election results from presidential races
Year	Office	Results
2008	President	John McCain 52 – Barack Obama 47%
2004	President	George W. Bush 55 – John Kerry 45%
2000	President	George W. Bush 53 – Al Gore 47%

List of representatives

Representative	Party	Years	Congress	Note
District created		January 3, 1983
Lawrence Smith	Democratic	January 3, 1983 – January 3, 1993	98th 99th 100th 101st 102nd	Retired
Tom Lewis	Republican	January 3, 1993 – January 3, 1995	103rd	Redistricted from the 12th district, Retired
Mark Foley	Republican	January 3, 1995 – September 29, 2006	104th 105th 106th 107th 108th 109th	Resigned
Vacant		September 29, 2006 – January 3, 2007	109th
Tim Mahoney	Democratic	January 3, 2007 – January 3, 2009	110th	Lost re-election
Tom Rooney	Republican	January 3, 2009 – January 3, 2013	111th 112th	Redistricted to the 17th district
Vern Buchanan	Republican	January 3, 2013 –	113th	Redistricted from the 13th district

Election Results

2002

Florida's 16th Congressional District Election (2002)
Party		Candidate	Votes	Percentage
	Republican	Mark Foley*	176,171	78.88%
	Constitution	Jack McLain	47,169	21.12%
Totals			223,340	100.00%
Voter turnout			%
	Republican hold

2004

Florida's 16th Congressional District Election (2004)
Party		Candidate	Votes	Percentage
	Republican	Mark Foley*	215,563	68.04%
	Democratic	Jeff Fisher	101,247	31.96%
Totals			316,810	100.00%
Voter turnout			%
	Republican hold

2006

Florida's 16th Congressional District Election (2006)
Party		Candidate	Votes	Percentage
	Democratic	Tim Mahoney	115,832	49.55%
	Republican	Mark Foley* (Joe Negron)	111,415	47.66%
	Independent	Emmie Lee Ross	6,526	2.79%
Totals			223,799	100.00%
Voter turnout			%
	Democratic gain from Republican

• The seat became vacant after Foley's sudden resignation on September 29, 2006, after it became public that he had sent inappropriate emails to male teenage former congressional pages. Foley's resignation occurred too late under Florida law to take his name off the ballot. Therefore, Foley's name remained on the ballot, but votes cast for him went to his replacement, State Representative Joe Negron, who would have been duly elected had Foley won the November 7, 2006 election. Since Mahoney won the election, the question did not arise.

2008

Florida's 16th Congressional District Election (2008)
Party		Candidate	Votes	Percentage
	Republican	Tom Rooney	209,847	60.10%
	Democratic	Tim Mahoney*	139,329	39.90%
Totals			349,176	100.00%
Voter turnout			%
	Republican gain from Democratic

• Incumbent Tim Mahoney ran for reelection in 2008. His opponent was Tom Rooney, a former JAG officer, Special Assistant United States Attorney, and professor at the United States Military Academy. Rooney is also the grandson of the founder of the Pittsburgh Steelers. While Mahoney was initially favored, after the scandal involving his mistress, the race shifted toward "likely Republican" on the Cook Political Report.

2010

Florida's 16th Congressional District Election (2010)
Party		Candidate	Votes	Percentage
	Republican	Tom Rooney*	162,285	66.85%
	Democratic	Jim Horn	80,327	33.09%
	No party	Others	151	0.06%
Totals			242,763	100.00%
Voter turnout			%
	Republican hold

References

• Martis, Kenneth C. (1989). The Historical Atlas of Political Parties in the United States Congress. New York: Macmillan Publishing Company. 
• Congressional Biographical Directory of the United States 1774–present

External links

• 2000 Census Data
• OpenSecrets.org's summary of spending for the 2006 race