Allison Tant (born 1961) is an American former lobbyist, Democratic Party of Florida chair, and politician serving as a member of the

Florida House of Representatives The Florida House of Representatives is the lower house of the Florida Legislature, the state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida, the Florida Senate being the upper house. Article III, Section 1 of the Constitution of Florida, adopte ...

from the 9th district. She assumed office on November 3, 2020.

Early life and education

Tant was born in

Jacksonville, Florida Jacksonville is a city located on the Atlantic coast of northeast Florida, the most populous city proper in the state and is the List of United States cities by area, largest city by area in the contiguous United States as of 2020. It is the co ...

. She attended Duncan U. Fletcher High School in

Neptune Beach, Florida Neptune Beach is a beachfront city east of Jacksonville in Duval County, Florida, United States. When the majority of Duval County communities consolidated with Jacksonville in 1968, Neptune Beach, along with Jacksonville Beach, Atlantic Beach ...

graduating in 1979. She earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in communication and a Bachelor of Science in psychology from Florida State University.

Career

Tant has worked as a lobbyist for

Holland & Knight Holland & Knight LLP is an American multinational law firm with more than 1,700 lawyers and other professionals in 35 offices in the United States, Europe, Latin America, and North Africa. Headquartered in Tampa, Florida, the firm provides repre ...

and Steel Hector & Davis International. From 2014 to 2016, she served as chair of the

Florida Democratic Party The Florida Democratic Party (FDP) is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Florida, headquartered in Tallahassee. Former mayor of Miami Manny Diaz Sr. is the current chair. Andrew Jackson, the first territorial governor o ...

. In July, 2016, Tant cast Florida's ballots in the 2016 Democratic National Convention for

Hillary Clinton Hillary Diane Rodham Clinton ( Rodham; born October 26, 1947) is an American politician, diplomat, and former lawyer who served as the 67th United States Secretary of State for President Barack Obama from 2009 to 2013, as a United States senat ...

. Tant did not seek re-election as chair after the

2016 United States elections The 2016 United States elections were held on Tuesday, November 8, 2016. Republican nominee Donald Trump defeated Democratic former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton in the presidential election, while Republicans retained control of Congres ...

, in which

lost Florida to

Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who served as the 45th president of the United States from 2017 to 2021. Trump graduated from the Wharton School of the University of ...

and Democrats gained only three seats in the

Florida Legislature The Florida Legislature is the legislature of the U.S. State of Florida. It is organized as a bicameral body composed of an upper chamber, the Senate, and a lower chamber, the House of Representatives. Article III, Section 1 of the Florida Co ...

. In November 2020, Tant was elected to the

, succeeding

Loranne Ausley Loranne Ausley (born October 16, 1963) is an American attorney and Democratic politician from Tallahassee, Florida. She served as a member of the Florida Senate from 2020 until her defeat in 2022, representing Calhoun, Franklin, Gadsden, Gu ...

Personal life

Tant is married to

Barry Richard Barry Richard (born March 28, 1942) is an American attorney and politician who served as a member of the Florida House of Representatives from 1974 to 1978. Early life and education Richard is a native of Miami Beach. He received his bachelor's ...

, an attorney and former member of the

who was one of several lawyers who represented

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

in ''

Bush v. Gore ''Bush v. Gore'', 531 U.S. 98 (2000), was a landmark decision of the United States Supreme Court on December 12, 2000, that settled a recount dispute in Florida's 2000 presidential election between George W. Bush and Al Gore. On December 8, t ...

''. Tant and Richard have three children.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Tant, Allison Living people People from Jacksonville, Florida Democratic Party members of the Florida House of Representatives Florida State University alumni Women state legislators in Florida 1961 births 21st-century American women