Joe Negron
Joe Negron | |
---|---|
President of the Florida Senate | |
In office November 22, 2016 – November 20, 2018 | |
Preceded by | Andy Gardiner |
Succeeded by | Bill Galvano |
Member of the Florida Senate | |
In office October 7, 2009 – November 6, 2018 | |
Preceded by | Ken Pruitt (28th)[1] Jeremy Ring (32nd)[2] Joseph Abruzzo (25th)[3] |
Succeeded by | Nancy Detert (28th)[4] Lauren Book (32nd)[5] Gayle Harrell (25th)[6] |
Constituency | 28th district (2009–2012) 32nd district (2012–2016) 25th district (2016–2018) |
Member of the Florida House of Representatives from the 82nd district | |
In office November 7, 2000 – November 7, 2006 | |
Preceded by | Art Argenio |
Succeeded by | William Snyder |
Personal details | |
Born | Joseph Negron, Jr.[7] October 9, 1961 West Palm Beach, Florida, U.S. |
Citizenship | USA |
Political party | Republican |
Spouse | Rebecca Horton |
Children | 3 |
Education | Stetson University (BA) Emory University (JD) Harvard University (MPA) |
Occupation | Politician |
Joseph Negron, Jr. (born October 9, 1961) is a
History
Negron was born in West Palm Beach. His parents left Cuba during the revolution and found work in a cigar factory in metro Miami. He was the first to graduate high school since no one in his family went to school. He attended
Florida House of Representatives
In 1999, when State Representative Tom Warner resigned from his seat in the legislature to accept an appointment as the state's first solicitor general, a special election was held to replace him in the 82nd District, which included parts of southern Martin County and northern Palm Beach County. [8] Negron ran to replace him, and faced Art Argenio, John Whitescarver, Melinda Tumminia, and John Carroll in the Republican primary. Negron placed first in the primary, winning 47% of the vote to Argenio's 30%, but because he did not win a majority, a runoff election was held that Argenio narrowly won with 52% of the vote. When Argenio ran for re-election in 2000, Negron once again challenged him in the primary, along with David Traill, and received a plurality of the vote, thus necessitating another runoff election. During the course of the campaign, the two candidates signed an agreement aimed at stopping the personal attacks on one another. Though both agreed that water discharge from Lake Okeechobee was harming the St. Lucie River, they disagreed on the solution to the problem; Argenio indicated that he would introduce legislation to set a maximum depth of the lake, which Negron blasted, arguing, "I don't think [a] legislator should be setting feet and inches of a lake. Can you imagine the chaos that would ensue if water managers who need flexibility can't make adjustments to the water level? I think it's nuts." The two also disagreed on health care policy, with Negron suggesting that patients should be able to sue HMOs and announcing that he would sponsor legislation that would allow patients to see specialists without approval from their primary care physician, and Argenio calling Negron's plans a "lawyer's bill of rights."[9] Ultimately, Negron narrowly defeated Argenio to win the Republican nomination for the seat, and was unopposed in the general election. He won re-election uncontested in 2002 and 2004 as well.
2006 congressional campaign
Negron initially planned on running for
Florida Senate
When Ken Pruitt resigned from his seat in the Florida Senate, Negron ran in the special election to replace him in the 28th District, which included eastern Indian River County, Martin County, northern Palm Beach County, and southern St. Lucie County. Negron was initially set to face former State Representative Art Argenio, whom he defeated in 2000, in the Republican primary, but Argenio withdrew, allowing Negron to win the nomination unopposed.[14] He faced Bill Ramos, the Democratic nominee, in the general election, and campaigned on protecting the St. Lucie River, promoting biotechnology, and increasing education spending, declaring, "I'm looking forward to working hard to continue building on the foundation that Senator Ken Pruitt built with the research coast."[15] He ran for re-election in 2010 and was elected unopposed. During the 2011 legislative session, Negron introduced legislation that aimed to reduce witness misidentifications by changing the procedure by which witnesses were shown photographs; under Negron's proposal, witnesses would be shown one photograph at a time by a person who did not know the identity of the real suspect. He argued that his proposed changes would increase the number of guilty people convicted and reduce the number of innocent people convicted, arguing, "Once you get picked out of a lineup, the odds of you being convicted is nearly 100 percent."[16]
In 2012, following the reconfiguration of the state's legislative districts, Negron was moved into the 32nd District, where he ran for re-election. He was opposed by Ray D'Amiano, a businessman and the Democratic nominee, who raised little money, and was attacked by D'Amiano for the amount of money he was raising.[17] The Palm Beach Post endorsed Negron, praising him as one of the legislature's "most influential Republican leaders" and "one of his party's more thoughtful and moderating voices." They noted, however, "We hope Sen. Negron does modify his position on many issues, from the expansion of Medicaid to the need to tax Internet sales to pay for priorities like public education."[18] Negron ended up defeating D'Amiano by a wide margin, receiving 60% of the vote to D'Amiano's 40%.
Negron's district was again reconfigured and renumbered after court-ordered redistricting in 2016.
Joe Negron has received an A+ rating from the National Rifle Association.
Negron resigned early, at the end of his two-year presidency, rather than serve out the remainder of his four-year term.[19]
References
- ^ "Our Campaigns - FL State Senate 28 - Special Election Race - Aug 04, 2009".
- ^ "Our Campaigns - FL State Senate 32 Race - Nov 06, 2012".
- ^ "Our Campaigns - FL State Senate 25 Race - Nov 08, 2016".
- ^ "Our Campaigns - FL State Senate 28 Race - Nov 02, 2010".
- ^ "Our Campaigns - FL State Senate 32 Race - Nov 04, 2014".
- ^ "Our Campaigns - FL State Senate 25 Race - Nov 08, 2016".
- ^ "Mr. Joseph Negron, Jr. Lawyer Profile". www.martindale.com. Archived from the original on October 22, 2019.
- Sun-Sentinel. February 26, 1999. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
- Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
- St. Petersburg Times. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
- ^ "GOP Picks Negron to Replace Foley on Florida Ballot". Fox News. October 3, 2006. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
- ^ "U.S. House, District 16: We recommend Tim Mahoney". Sarasota Herald-Tribune. October 23, 2006. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
- Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
- ^ Kam, Dara (May 28, 2009). "Argenio to drop out of primary against Negron for Pruitt Senate seat". The Palm Beach Post. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
- ^ Bennett, George (August 4, 2009). "Joe Negron scores massive win in special state Senate election". The Palm Beach Post. Archived from the original on September 28, 2013. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
- Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
- ^ Stapleton, Christine (October 16, 2012). "Negron outraising political newcomer". The Palm Beach Post. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
- ^ Marra, Andrew (October 25, 2012). "Editorial: Negron over D'Amiano". The Palm Beach Post. Retrieved June 11, 2014.
- ^ Rohrer, Gray (May 2, 2011). "Senate President Joe Negron resigns, cites term limits". Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved June 5, 2018.