Jason Shoaf
Member of the Florida House of Representatives
from the 7th district
Assumed office
June 18, 2019
Preceded byHalsey Beshears
Personal details
Born (1979-09-20) September 20, 1979
Panama City, Florida, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Children2
Residence(s)Port St. Joe, Florida, U.S.
Websitewww.jasonshoaf.com

Jason Shoaf (born September 20, 1979) is an American politician serving as a member of the Florida House of Representatives from the 7th district, which includes Franklin, Gulf, Jefferson, Dixie, Suwannee, Hamilton, Lafayette, Liberty, Taylor, and Wakulla Counties, and part of Leon County. He was first elected in a 2019 special election.

Early life and education

Shoaf was born in Panama City, and attended Tallahassee Community College and Florida State University. He is the nephew of former Governor Wayne Mixson and the grandson of former State Representative Cecil G. Costin.

Career

Shoaf worked as a businessman prior to entering politics, serving as the vice-president of St. Joe Natural Gas Company and Gulf South Self Storage and Alliance Property Management.[1] He was appointed to the board of the Port St. Joe Port Authority Board and to the board of Triumph Gulf Coast, a state-run non-profit tasked with disbursing funds recovered from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill.[2]

Florida House of Representatives

Following Halsey Beshear's resignation from the House to serve as Secretary of the Florida Department of Business and Professional Regulation, a special election was held to replace Beshears in the House.[3] Shoaf announced that he would run in the special election, and faced Mike Watkins, Lynda Bell, the Sneads City Manager and a former Miami-Dade County Commissioner; and 2018 congressional candidate Virginia Fuller in the primary election.[4] He campaigned on "bringing high-paying jobs to the district" and on "expand[ing] vocational opportunities" in public schools[2] and emphasized his outsider credentials.[1] He was endorsed by several prominent North Florida Republican politicians—former State House Speaker Allan Bense, former State Senate President Don Gaetz, and Congressman Matt Gaetz[5]—while Watkins was endorsed by local sheriffs and the state's police and firefighter unions[4] and Bell was endorsed by a right-to-life group.[6] The campaign grew heated and personal, with Watkins nearly starting a fight with Shoaf after Watkins alleged that Shoaf touched his fiancée's arm, an allegation Shoaf & witnesses denied.[7] Ultimately, despite the perceived closeness of the race, Shoaf ended up winning by a wide margin, receiving 49% of the vote to Watkins's 27%, Bell's 20%, and Fuller's 4%.[8]

Shoaf advanced to the general election, where he faced Ryan Terrell, a Tallahassee communications consultant and the Democratic nominee.[9] Against Terrell, Shoaf focused on his conservative positions, like his support for Donald Trump, gun rights, and anti-abortion legislation, but also campaigned on nonpartisan issues, like helping the district recover from Hurricane Michael.[10] Ultimately, despite the district's Democratic voter registration and history of supporting downballot Democratic candidates,[10] Shoaf prevailed over Terrell in a landslide, winning 71% of the vote to Terrell's 29%.[9]

References

  1. 1 2 Call, James (December 14, 2018). "Two GOP District 7 candidates emerge to replace Rep. Halsey Beshears in the Legislature". Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
  2. 1 2 Croft, Tim (December 20, 2018). "Jason Shoaf announces for Florida House". The Star. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
  3. ↑ McAuliffe, Danny (December 11, 2018). "Ron DeSantis taps Halsey Beshears to be next DBPR Secretary". Florida Politics. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
  4. 1 2 McAuliffe, Danny (April 10, 2019). "Jason Shoaf coasts to victory in House District 7 Republican primary". Florida Politics. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
  5. ↑ Call, James (April 10, 2019). "How Jason Shoaf pulled off a runaway victory in House District 7 race". Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
  6. ↑ McAuliffe, Danny (February 21, 2019). "Pro-life PAC backs Lynda Bell for HD 7". Florida Politics. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
  7. ↑ Ogles, Jacob (January 21, 2019). "Fisticuffs threatened in GOP primary for House District 7". Florida Politics. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
  8. ↑ "April 9, 2019 Primary Election, House 7 & 38, Republican Primary, District: 7". Florida Department of State Division of Elections. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
  9. 1 2 Call, James (June 19, 2019). "Republican Jason Shoaf celebrates dominant Florida House District 7 win". Tallahassee Democrat. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
  10. 1 2 McAuliffe, Danny (April 15, 2019). "Jason Shoaf, Ryan Terrell offer two distinct options for HD 7 voters". Florida Politics. Retrieved November 21, 2019.
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