Jim Davis (Florida politician)
Template:Future election candidate
James Oscar "Jim" Davis III (born October 11, 1957) is an American politician from the U.S. state of Florida. He is a Democrat and served in the U.S. House of Representatives since 1997, representing Florida's 11th district. He is the Democratic nominee for governor of Florida in the 2006 election.
Early life and education
Davis was born in Tampa, Florida. He graduated from Jesuit High School of Tampa in 1975, and attended Washington and Lee University, where he received his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1979. He later attended the University of Florida's College of Law, received his Juris Doctor law degree in 1982.
Career
Davis worked as a lawyer in private practice from 1982 to 1988, when he became a partner in the Tampa-based business law firm of Bush, Ross, Gardner, Warren & Rudy. Davis was elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 1989 and served until 1996, serving as House Majority Leader from 1995 to 1996.
Davis is one of the co-chairs of the New Democrat Coalition in the House of Representatives. The New Democrat Coalition is affiliated with the centrist Democratic Leadership Council.
Davis announced his candidacy for governor of Florida in 2005 and as of September 5th, he has become the Democratic nominee for the office, beating Florida state Senator Rod Smith by a margin of 46 percent to 42 percent. He received the endorsement of former Governor and U.S. Senator Bob Graham, former Lieutenant Governor Buddy MacKay, former First Lady Rhea Chiles (wife of Lawton Chiles), former mayor of Tallahassee and Florida Democratic Party chairman Scott Maddox, and Representatives Alcee Hastings, Robert Wexler, Corrine Brown, and Debbie Wasserman Schultz.
Committee assignments and caucus memberships
Election results
Davis was elected to the House as the representative of the 11th district in the 1996 election and was reelected in the 1998, 2000, 2002, and 2004 elections.
In the 2004 election, Davis was challenged by Libertarian Party candidate Robert Edward Johnson, a database consultant, and Socialist Workers Party candidate Karl M. Butts, a farmer. Davis won 85.8 percent of the vote, with Johnson taking 14.1 percent and Butts taking 0.1 percent.
| Jim Davis | Robert Edward Johnson | Karl M. Butts | |
| Party | Democratic | Libertarian | Socialist Workers |
| Total | 191,780 | 31,579 | 122 |
| Percentage | 85.8 | 14.1 | 0.1 |
Davis ran unopposed.
| Jim Davis | Charlie Westlake | Kay M. Sauer | |
| Party | Democratic | Libertarian | Socialist Workers |
| Subtotal | 149,433 | 27,194 | 21 |
| Absentee | 32 | 3 | 0 |
| Total | 149,465 | 27,197 | 21 |
| Percentage | 84.6 | 15.4 | <0.1 |
| Jim Davis | Joe Chillura | |
| Party | Democratic | Republican |
| Subtotal | 85,249 | 46,166 |
| Absentee | 13 | 10 |
| Total | 85,262 | 46,176 |
| Percentage | 64.9 | 35.1 |
| Jim Davis | Mark Sharpe | |
| Party | Democratic | Republican |
| Subtotal | 108,500 | 78,856 |
| Absentee | 22 | 25 |
| Total | 108,522 | 78,881 |
| Percentage | 57.9 | 42.1 |
Fundraising
Davis has raised more than $2.9 million, with more than $2.3 million in the bank. $650,000 was raised in the most recent quarter, Davis's best to date. Davis currently leads all Democratic candidates in fundraising, but has less than one-third the cash-on-hand raised by either Republican candidate.
Because Davis is in an elected federal position, he is limited in his ability to raise money for the state Democratic Party. Davis cannot solicit more than $10,000 in soft money from any one person and cannot solicit at all from corporations or labor unions.
Platform
According to his campaign website and public pronouncements, Davis as Governor would:
- Balanced Budget: Support a balanced budget.
- Education: Use $2 billion of the state surplus to construct new schools. Davis would also create incentives for mid-career professionals to become teachers in their subject areas.
- End of life decisions: Oppose government intervention in end-of-life decisions. For this reason, Davis has been endorsed by Terri PAC and its chairman, Michael Schiavo, former husband of brain damaged cause célèbre Terri Schiavo.
- Environment: Oppose off-shore oil drilling. Davis also supports increased funding for Everglades cleanup. Davis would also increase funding for alternative energy research in Florida.
- Gay Rights: Support civil unions but not marriages for gay couples. Davis would also allow same-sex couples to adopt children. Davis has been endorsed by the President of the Florida GLBT Caucus, Michael Albetta, President of the GLBT Dolphin Democratic Club, Ken Keechl, and the following openly gay elected officials, Wilton Manors Commissioner Joe Angelo, former Mayor of Wilton Manors Jim Stork, former Fort Lauderdale City Commissioner Dean Trantalis and other GLBT leaders across the state.
- Healthcare: Increase funding for children's healthcare. Davis would establish "Express Lane" enrollment and increased advertising for existing programs, specifically KidCare. Davis has supported the Patient's Bill of Rights at the federal level.
- Internet: Bring broadband access to every community in Florida, including rural areas.
- Job training: Create a tax credit for businesses to provide their employees with job training.
- Prescription drugs: Pool Florida's purchasing power with other states to negotiate lower rates. Davis would also allow seniors to purchase medicine from licensed pharmacies in Canada.
- Small Business: Increase tax cuts for small businesses and support their ability to collectively purchase health insurance plans at cheaper rates. Davis would also increase funding for business incubators.
Personal life
Davis's wife is Peggy Bessent Davis. The couple has two children, Peter and William. He is a member of the Episcopal Church.
Gubernatorial Debates
Several gubernatorial candidates in the 2006 election have invited Jim Davis to a debate about Florida's future.As of September 29 there has been no reply.The first debate including five out of eight candidates is scheduled this Sunday in Boynton Beach Barnes and Noble bookstore at 3 pm.All candidates are invited as are their representatives. We thank the Jim Davis team for sending a representative! We agreed that the Mark Foley scandal is an emergency and that the Crist,Sembler alliance needs to be carefully scrutinized next for its secretiveness of lifestyle and for child abuse documented by Wes Fager.Florida deserves better we agreed.Next debate tomorrow Monday evening same time and place. All are welcome!.