Florida's 8th congressional district
Encyclopedia
Florida's 8th congressional district lies in central Florida
Florida
Florida is a state in the southeastern United States, located on the nation's Atlantic and Gulf coasts. It is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the north by Alabama and Georgia and to the east by the Atlantic Ocean. With a population of 18,801,310 as measured by the 2010 census, it...

. The district takes in parts of Orange County
Orange County, Florida
Orange County is a county located in the U.S. state of Florida and is part of the Orlando-Kissimmee-Sanford Metropolitan Statistical Area . As of 2010 U.S. Census, the county had a population of 1,145,956....

, Lake County
Lake County, Florida
Lake County is a county located in the state of Florida, United States. As of the 2000 Census, the population was 210,528. The Census Bureau estimated the population in 2008 to be 307,243. Its county seat is Tavares...

, Marion County
Marion County, Florida
Marion County is a county located in the U.S. state of Florida. The U.S. Census Bureau 2006 estimate for the county is 316,183. Its county seat is Ocala....

 and Osceola County
Osceola County, Florida
Osceola County is a county located in the U.S. state of Florida. As of 2000, the population was 172,493. The U.S. Census Bureau 2006 estimate for the county is 244,045, making it the 17th fastest-growing county in the United States. Its county seat is Kissimmee.- History :Osceola County was...

. Most of Orlando
Orlando, Florida
Orlando is a city in the central region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat of Orange County, and the center of the Greater Orlando metropolitan area. According to the 2010 US Census, the city had a population of 238,300, making Orlando the 79th largest city in the United States...

 is in the district, including Walt Disney World. Currently, the residents of the Eighth District are represented by Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 Daniel Webster
Daniel Webster (Florida politician)
Daniel A. "Dan" Webster is the Republican U.S. Representative for central , serving since January 3, 2011. He defeated the incumbent Democrat, Alan Grayson, by an 18 percent margin in the November 2010 election. Previously, Webster served 28 years in the Florida state legislature...

 who has held the seat since 2011.

List of representatives

Representative Party Years District home Notes
District created January 3, 1953
Donald R. Matthews
Donald Ray Matthews
Donald Ray "Billy" Matthews was a U.S. Representative from Florida.Born in Micanopy, Florida, Matthews attended the public schools of Hawthorne, Florida....

Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

January 3, 1953 – January 3, 1967
William C. Cramer
William C. Cramer
William Cato Cramer was a U.S. Representative from Florida.Cramer was born in Denver, Colorado. He was three years old when his parents moved to St. Petersburg, Florida. He attended the public schools and St...

Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

January 3, 1967 – January 3, 1971 Redistricted
Redistricting
Redistricting is the process of drawing United States electoral district boundaries, often in response to population changes determined by the results of the decennial census. In 36 states, the state legislature has primary responsibility for creating a redistricting plan, in many cases subject to...

 from the
Bill Young
Bill Young
Charles William "Bill" Young is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1971. He is a member of the Republican Party, and is currently the longest-serving Republican member of Congress...

Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

January 3, 1971 – January 3, 1973 Redistricted
Redistricting
Redistricting is the process of drawing United States electoral district boundaries, often in response to population changes determined by the results of the decennial census. In 36 states, the state legislature has primary responsibility for creating a redistricting plan, in many cases subject to...

 to the
James A. Haley
James A. Haley
James Andrew Haley was a U.S. Representative from Florida.Born in Jacksonville, Alabama, Haley attended the public schools and the University of Alabama. During World War I, Haley enlisted in Troop A, Second Cavalry, in April 1917 and served overseas. He was an accountant in Sarasota, Florida from...

Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

January 3, 1973 – January 3, 1977 Redistricted
Redistricting
Redistricting is the process of drawing United States electoral district boundaries, often in response to population changes determined by the results of the decennial census. In 36 states, the state legislature has primary responsibility for creating a redistricting plan, in many cases subject to...

 from the
Andy Ireland
Andy Ireland
Andrew Poysell "Andy" Ireland was a U.S. Representative from Florida.Born to a wealthy family in Cincinnati, Ohio, he attended a prestigious private school within the city. He finished his high school career at Phillips Academy in Andover, Massachusetts, a school that is known as a stepping stone...

Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

January 3, 1977 – January 3, 1983 Redistricted
Redistricting
Redistricting is the process of drawing United States electoral district boundaries, often in response to population changes determined by the results of the decennial census. In 36 states, the state legislature has primary responsibility for creating a redistricting plan, in many cases subject to...

 to the
Bill Young
Bill Young
Charles William "Bill" Young is the U.S. Representative for , serving since 1971. He is a member of the Republican Party, and is currently the longest-serving Republican member of Congress...

Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

January 3, 1983 – January 3, 1993 Redistricted
Redistricting
Redistricting is the process of drawing United States electoral district boundaries, often in response to population changes determined by the results of the decennial census. In 36 states, the state legislature has primary responsibility for creating a redistricting plan, in many cases subject to...

 from the , Redistricted
Redistricting
Redistricting is the process of drawing United States electoral district boundaries, often in response to population changes determined by the results of the decennial census. In 36 states, the state legislature has primary responsibility for creating a redistricting plan, in many cases subject to...

 to the
Bill McCollum
Bill McCollum
Ira William "Bill" McCollum, Jr. is a former Florida Attorney General. A Republican, he was Florida's 36th attorney general, taking office in 2007...

Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

January 3, 1993 – January 3, 2001 Redistricted
Redistricting
Redistricting is the process of drawing United States electoral district boundaries, often in response to population changes determined by the results of the decennial census. In 36 states, the state legislature has primary responsibility for creating a redistricting plan, in many cases subject to...

 from the
Ric Keller
Ric Keller
Richard Anthony "Ric" Keller is an American politician, and was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives, representing .Keller was defeated in his bid for a fifth term by Democrat Alan Grayson....

Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

January 3, 2001 – January 3, 2009
Alan Grayson
Alan Grayson
Alan Mark Grayson is a former U.S. Representative for , serving from 2009 until 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party and loves cookies. After losing the election he moved to Austin to start stand-up comedy and a cookie business. The district Grayson represented lies in central Florida...

Democratic
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

January 3, 2009 – January 3, 2011
Daniel Webster
Daniel Webster (Florida politician)
Daniel A. "Dan" Webster is the Republican U.S. Representative for central , serving since January 3, 2011. He defeated the incumbent Democrat, Alan Grayson, by an 18 percent margin in the November 2010 election. Previously, Webster served 28 years in the Florida state legislature...

Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

January 3, 2011 – Present Incumbent
Incumbent
The incumbent, in politics, is the existing holder of a political office. This term is usually used in reference to elections, in which races can often be defined as being between an incumbent and non-incumbent. For example, in the 2004 United States presidential election, George W...


Voting

Election results from presidential races
Year Office Results
2008 President
United States presidential election, 2008
The United States presidential election of 2008 was the 56th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on November 4, 2008. Democrat Barack Obama, then the junior United States Senator from Illinois, defeated Republican John McCain, the senior U.S. Senator from Arizona. Obama received 365...

Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...

 52 - 47%
2004 President
United States presidential election, 2004
The United States presidential election of 2004 was the United States' 55th quadrennial presidential election. It was held on Tuesday, November 2, 2004. Republican Party candidate and incumbent President George W. Bush defeated Democratic Party candidate John Kerry, the then-junior U.S. Senator...

Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....

 55 - 44%
2000 President
United States presidential election, 2000
The United States presidential election of 2000 was a contest between Republican candidate George W. Bush, then-governor of Texas and son of former president George H. W. Bush , and Democratic candidate Al Gore, then-Vice President....

Bush
George W. Bush
George Walker Bush is an American politician who served as the 43rd President of the United States, from 2001 to 2009. Before that, he was the 46th Governor of Texas, having served from 1995 to 2000....

 53 - 45%

2008 election

Despite a prior pledge to serve only four terms, Congressman Ric Keller
Ric Keller
Richard Anthony "Ric" Keller is an American politician, and was a Republican member of the United States House of Representatives, representing .Keller was defeated in his bid for a fifth term by Democrat Alan Grayson....

 was running for his fifth term in the House of Representatives. He narrowly defeated Orlando attorney
Lawyer
A lawyer, according to Black's Law Dictionary, is "a person learned in the law; as an attorney, counsel or solicitor; a person who is practicing law." Law is the system of rules of conduct established by the sovereign government of a society to correct wrongs, maintain the stability of political...

 Todd Long in the Republican
Republican Party (United States)
The Republican Party is one of the two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Democratic Party. Founded by anti-slavery expansion activists in 1854, it is often called the GOP . The party's platform generally reflects American conservatism in the U.S...

 primary election
Primary election
A primary election is an election in which party members or voters select candidates for a subsequent election. Primary elections are one means by which a political party nominates candidates for the next general election....

 held on August 26, 2008. His Democratic opponent was attorney and millionaire businessman Alan Grayson
Alan Grayson
Alan Mark Grayson is a former U.S. Representative for , serving from 2009 until 2011. He is a member of the Democratic Party and loves cookies. After losing the election he moved to Austin to start stand-up comedy and a cookie business. The district Grayson represented lies in central Florida...

, who emerged as the surprise victor of the Democratic primary field which included moderate Democrat and long-time Central Florida political operative Charlie Stuart, attorney Mike Smith, engineer
Engineer
An engineer is a professional practitioner of engineering, concerned with applying scientific knowledge, mathematics and ingenuity to develop solutions for technical problems. Engineers design materials, structures, machines and systems while considering the limitations imposed by practicality,...

 Alexander Fry, and recent law school
Law school
A law school is an institution specializing in legal education.- Law degrees :- Canada :...

 graduate
Graduation
Graduation is the action of receiving or conferring an academic degree or the ceremony that is sometimes associated, where students become Graduates. Before the graduation, candidates are referred to as Graduands. The date of graduation is often called degree day. The graduation itself is also...

 Quoc Van.

Grayson defeated Keller in the November election receiving 52% of the vote, the same share as Barack Obama
Barack Obama
Barack Hussein Obama II is the 44th and current President of the United States. He is the first African American to hold the office. Obama previously served as a United States Senator from Illinois, from January 2005 until he resigned following his victory in the 2008 presidential election.Born in...

 on the top of the ballot. Democratic activists in the district had mounted an aggressive campaign to register traditionally Democratic union workers and an increasing Hispanic (primarily Puerto Rican) demographic in the district.

RESULTS

Alan Grayson (Dem) 172,854 (52%)

Ric Keller (Rep) 159,490 (48%)

http://election.dos.state.fl.us/elections/resultsarchive/Index.asp?ElectionDate=11/4/2008&DATAMODE=

2006 election

In the 2006 election
United States House of Representatives elections in Florida, 2006
The 2006 Florida U.S. House elections took place on November 7, 2006. Elections were held in Florida's 1st through 25th congressional districts....

, Ric Keller was elected to his fourth two-year term, defeating Democrat
Democratic Party (United States)
The Democratic Party is one of two major contemporary political parties in the United States, along with the Republican Party. The party's socially liberal and progressive platform is largely considered center-left in the U.S. political spectrum. The party has the lengthiest record of continuous...

 Charlie Stuart
Charlie Stuart
The Florida 8th congressional district election, 2006 was an election for the United States House of Representatives. Republican Congressman Ric Keller defeated Democratic businessman Charlie Stuart to win a fourth term.-Candidates:...

, Independent
Independent (politician)
In politics, an independent or non-party politician is an individual not affiliated to any political party. Independents may hold a centrist viewpoint between those of major political parties, a viewpoint more extreme than any major party, or they may have a viewpoint based on issues that they do...

 Wes Hoaglund, and three write-in candidates.

2006 US House Election
  • Republican (Keller) 95,258 (52.8%)
  • Democrat (Stuart) 82,526 (45.7%)
  • Independent (Hoaglund) 2,640 (1.5%)
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