Ira William McCollum Jr. (born July 12, 1944) is an American lawyer and
Republican Party politician. He was a member of the
United States House of Representatives
The United States House of Representatives is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the lower house, with the U.S. Senate being the upper house. Together, the House and Senate have the authority under Artic ...
from 1981 to 2001, representing
Florida's 5th congressional district, which was later redistricted to the
8th congressional district in 1993. As a member of the House, McCollum rose to become
Vice Chairman of the House Republican Conference, the fifth-highest ranking position in the House Republican leadership. He voted to
impeach President Bill Clinton and subsequently took a leadership role in managing
Clinton's trial in the
Senate
A senate is a deliberative assembly, often the upper house or chamber of a bicameral legislature. The name comes from the ancient Roman Senate (Latin: ''Senatus''), so-called as an assembly of the senior (Latin: ''senex'' meaning "the el ...
, which ended in acquittal.
McCollum was the Republican nominee for the
United States Senate
The United States Senate is a chamber of the Bicameralism, bicameral United States Congress; it is the upper house, with the United States House of Representatives, U.S. House of Representatives being the lower house. Together, the Senate and ...
in
2000
2000 was designated as the International Year for the Culture of Peace and the World Mathematics, Mathematical Year.
Popular culture holds the year 2000 as the first year of the 21st century and the 3rd millennium, because of a tende ...
, hoping to replace the retiring Republican
Connie Mack III, losing to
Democratic nominee
Bill Nelson
Clarence William Nelson II (born September 29, 1942) is an American politician, attorney, and former astronaut who served from 2001 to 2019 as a United States Senate, United States senator from Florida and from 2021 to 2025 as the Administrator ...
. McCollum ran for the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate again
in 2004 but lost to
Mel Martínez. In
2006
2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification.
Events
January
* January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute.
* January 12 – A stampede during t ...
he was elected
Florida Attorney General and in
2010
The year saw a multitude of natural and environmental disasters such as the 2010 Haiti earthquake, the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, and the 2010 Chile earthquake. The 2009 swine flu pandemic, swine flu pandemic which began the previous year ...
he was an unsuccessful candidate for the Republican nomination for
Governor of Florida
The governor of Florida is the head of government of the U.S. state of Florida. The Governor (United States), governor is the head of the Government of Florida#Executive branch, executive branch of the government of Florida and is the comman ...
, losing to businessman
Rick Scott
Richard Lynn Scott ( Myers; born December 1, 1952) is an American attorney, businessman, politician, and United States Navy, Navy veteran serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States senator from the state of F ...
.
Early life
Born and raised in
Brooksville, Florida
Brooksville is a city in and the county seat of Hernando County, Florida, Hernando County, Florida, in the United States. At the 2010 United States Census, 2010 census it had a population of 7,719, up from 7,264 at the 2000 census. Brooksville is ...
, McCollum graduated from
Hernando High School and earned his bachelor's degree and
J.D. degree from the
University of Florida
The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...
. While at the
University of Florida
The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public university, public land-grant university, land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida, United States. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida and a preem ...
, he was inducted into the University of Florida Hall of Fame, the most prestigious honor a student leader could receive, was a member of The Board, and served as president of
Florida Blue Key.
McCollum's professional career began in 1969 with the
United States Navy
The United States Navy (USN) is the naval warfare, maritime military branch, service branch of the United States Department of Defense. It is the world's most powerful navy with the largest Displacement (ship), displacement, at 4.5 millio ...
's
Judge Advocate General Corps where he served on active duty until 1972. McCollum was an officer for more than 23 years before retiring from the
United States Naval Reserve as a
Commander
Commander (commonly abbreviated as Cmdr.) is a common naval officer rank as well as a job title in many army, armies. Commander is also used as a rank or title in other formal organizations, including several police forces. In several countri ...
(O-5) in the JAG Corps in 1992. In 1973, he entered private practice in
Orlando and became involved in local politics, serving as Chairman of the Seminole County Republican Party from 1976 to 1980.
Congressional career
In 1980 McCollum was elected to the
U.S. House of Representatives from a district including
Walt Disney World
The Walt Disney World Resort is an destination resort, entertainment resort complex located about southwest of Orlando, Florida, United States. Opened on October 1, 1971, the resort is operated by Disney Experiences, a division of the Wa ...
and most of Orlando. He defeated incumbent Representative
Richard Kelly in the Republican primary.
While in Congress, McCollum founded the House Republican Task Force on Terrorism and Unconventional Warfare, chairing it for six years. He also served three terms on the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, two of which as chairman of its Subcommittee on Human Intelligence, Analysis, and Counterintelligence. Additionally, McCollum served as vice chairman of the House Banking Committee and served on the Judiciary Committee, where he was chairman of the Subcommittee on Crime.
While serving the House, McCollum was also selected for a variety of Republican leadership positions, including three terms as vice chairman of the House Republican Conference. McCollum gained national attention as one of 15 members selected to serve on the House Committee to Investigate the Iran-Contra Affair, and, in 1998–1999, as one of the
House managers
An impeachment manager is a legislator appointed to serve as a prosecutor in an impeachment trial. They are also often called "House managers" or "House impeachment manager" when appointed from a legislative chamber that is called a "House of Repr ...
(prosecutors) in
the impeachment trial of President
Bill Clinton
William Jefferson Clinton (né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician and lawyer who was the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, ...
.
U.S. Senate elections
Rather than seek reelection to the House in 2000, McCollum ran unsuccessfully for an open United States Senate seat, bringing to an end his 20-year Congressional career.
McCollum ran again in 2004, seeking the Republican nomination for the U.S. Senate seat being vacated by retiring Senator
Bob Graham
Daniel Robert Graham (November 9, 1936 – April 16, 2024) was an American lawyer, author, and politician who served as the 38th List of governors of Florida, governor of Florida from 1979 to 1987 and a United States Senate, United States senat ...
. He was defeated in the Republican primary by
HUD Secretary
Mel Martinez, who went on to win the seat.
McCollum served as a partner with the Baker & Hostetler LLP law firm, practicing in the federal policy area. In addition to his duties as the state's
chief legal officer
A general counsel, also known as chief counsel or chief legal officer (CLO), is the chief in-house lawyer for a company or a governmental department.
In a company, the person holding the position typically reports directly to the CEO, and their ...
, he serves as president and chairman of the Healthy Florida Foundation, chartered in 2002 to find consensus on long-term solutions to the nation's health care system. He is a member of the North Florida Committee on Foreign Relations. He is also a
board member of the
James Madison Institute.
Florida Attorney General

In
2006
2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification.
Events
January
* January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute.
* January 12 – A stampede during t ...
, McCollum ran for Florida Attorney General, defeating State Senator
Skip Campbell in the general election.
McCollum led a group of Attorneys General in filing a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of
Obamacare. He also filed a brief in support of
Arizona's immigration law.
McCollum opposed the federal
Stimulus bill, as well as the $20 billion federal oil fund that limited his office's ability to pursue claims against BP, and requested additional authority from the federal government to address Medicaid fraud.
While Attorney General, McCollum defended Florida's ban on adoptions by homosexuals from a lawsuit, ''
In re: Gill'', that challenged the ban. McCollum hired Dr.
George Rekers, a controversial clinical psychologist, to testify during the trial that heterosexual parents provide a better environment for children. The trial resulted in the overturning of the ban. When an appellate court upheld the lower court ruling, McCollum declined to appeal the case to the Supreme Court.
McCollum was also the Florida Chairman for the
Rudy Giuliani
Rudolph William Louis Giuliani ( , ; born May 28, 1944) is an American politician and Disbarment, disbarred lawyer who served as the 107th mayor of New York City from 1994 to 2001. He previously served as the United States Associate Attorney ...
presidential campaign in 2008.
2010 gubernatorial candidacy

On May 18, 2009, McCollum announced his candidacy for
Governor of Florida
The governor of Florida is the head of government of the U.S. state of Florida. The Governor (United States), governor is the head of the Government of Florida#Executive branch, executive branch of the government of Florida and is the comman ...
. The election determined the successor of
Charlie Crist
Charles Joseph Crist Jr. ( ; born July 24, 1956) is an American attorney and politician who served as the 44th List of governors of Florida, governor of Florida from 2007 to 2011 and as the United States House of Representatives, U.S. represen ...
who later lost his bid for a seat in the
U.S. Senate.
McCollum opposed
federal health care mandates in Florida, decrying them as an unconstitutional "tax on living," and joined with 13 other state attorneys general in filing a federal lawsuit. The majority of Florida voters opposed such a lawsuit according to polling in April 2010. He has advocated a state constitutional amendment that would opt Florida out of Washington mandates on health care, although questions about whether such an amendment would be constitutional have been raised. On September 8, 2009 McCollum said he supported Medicare and Medicaid programs but opposed a government-run '
public option' for health insurance.
[ ]
In the Republican primary, McCollum faced businessman
Rick Scott
Richard Lynn Scott ( Myers; born December 1, 1952) is an American attorney, businessman, politician, and United States Navy, Navy veteran serving as the Seniority in the United States Senate, senior United States senator from the state of F ...
, who had never before held elective office. McCollum criticized Scott's tenure as CEO of healthcare company Columbia/HCA, during which the company became entangled in a federal Medicare fraud investigation. Scott countered that the FBI had never targeted him personally. The ''
Miami Herald
The ''Miami Herald'' is an American daily newspaper owned by McClatchy, The McClatchy Company and headquartered in Miami-Dade County, Florida. Founded in 1903, it is the fifth-largest newspaper in Florida, serving Miami-Dade, Broward County, Fl ...
'' noted that a 1998 congressional bill sponsored by McCollum would have made it more difficult to prosecute Medicare fraud cases, a fact that undermined McCollum’s criticisms of Scott.
Scott defeated McCollum in the August primary with approximately 46.4% percent of the vote to McCollum's 43.4%
Private sector
In 2014, McCollum was named to the board of directors of AML Superconductivity & Magnetics, a privately held company that develops magnet-based and superconducting applications, located in Melbourne, Florida.
Personal life
McCollum is married to Ingrid Seebohm McCollum. They have three sons: Douglas, Justin, and Andrew.
See also
*
Joe Jacquot (McCollum's Deputy Attorney General and chief of staff)
References
External links
Bill McCollum, official profile Office of the Florida attorney general
Bill McCollum ''official campaign site''
*
Campaign contributionsat OpenSecrets.org (2004 Senate race)
*
, -
, -
, -
, -
, -
, -
{{DEFAULTSORT:McCollum, Bill
1944 births
20th-century American lawyers
20th-century American naval officers
21st-century American lawyers
American Security Council Foundation
Candidates in the 2000 United States elections
Candidates in the 2004 United States elections
Candidates in the 2010 United States elections
Florida attorneys general
Fredric G. Levin College of Law alumni
United States Navy Judge Advocate General's Corps
Living people
Military personnel from Florida
People associated with BakerHostetler
People from Brooksville, Florida
Republican Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Florida
University of Florida alumni
Members of Congress who became lobbyists
20th-century members of the United States House of Representatives