Scott Randolph
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Scott Allen Randolph (born October 17, 1973) is a Democratic politician who has served as the Orange County tax collector since 2013. Prior to his election as tax collector, he served 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 (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida, the Florida Senate being the upper house. Article III, Section 1 of the C ...
, representing the 36th District from 2006 to 2012.


History

Randolph was born in
Johnson City, Tennessee Johnson City is a city in Washington, Carter, and Sullivan counties in the U.S. state of Tennessee, mostly in Washington County. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 71,046, making it Tennessee's eighth-most populous cit ...
, and grew up in
Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...
before attending
Bradley University Bradley University is a private university in Peoria, Illinois, United States. Founded in 1897, Bradley University enrolls 5,200 students who are pursuing degrees in more than 100 undergraduate programs and more than 30 graduate programs in fiv ...
, where he graduated with his
bachelor's degree A bachelor's degree (from Medieval Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six years ...
in 1995. He graduated from the
University of Georgia School of Law The University of Georgia School of Law (Georgia Law) is the law school of the University of Georgia, a Public university, public research university in Athens, Georgia. It was founded in 1859, making it one of the oldest American university law ...
with his
Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...
in 1999, and joined environmental causes as a lawyer, successfully filing a lawsuit against the state of
Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...
for its failure to protect the
Suwannee River The Suwannee River (also spelled Suwanee River or Swanee River) is a river that runs through south Georgia southward into Florida in the Southern United States. It is a wild blackwater river, about long.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrog ...
and
Lake Okeechobee Lake Okeechobee ( ) is the largest freshwater lake in the U.S. state of Florida. It is the List of largest lakes of the United States by area, eighth-largest natural freshwater lake among the 50 states of the United States and the second-largest ...
from agricultural runoff. Randolph joined Clean Water Action, an organization founded to protect the
Clean Water Act The Clean Water Act (CWA) is the primary federal law in the United States governing water pollution. Its objective is to restore and maintain the chemical, physical, and biological integrity of the nation's waters; recognizing the primary respo ...
, soon after, where he met his wife, with whom he moved to
Orlando Orlando commonly refers to: * Orlando, Florida, a city in the United States Orlando may also refer to: People * Orlando (given name), a masculine name, includes a list of people with the name * Orlando (surname), includes a list of people wit ...
in 2002.


Florida House of Representatives

In 2005, Randolph announced that he would run for the
Florida House of Representatives The Florida House of Representatives is the lower house of the Florida Legislature, the State legislature (United States), state legislature of the U.S. state of Florida, the Florida Senate being the upper house. Article III, Section 1 of the C ...
from the 36th District, which stretched from Azalea Park to Oak Ridge and Eatonville, intent on challenging incumbent
State Representative A state legislature is a legislative branch or body of a political subdivision in a federal system. Two federations literally use the term "state legislature": * The legislative branches of each of the fifty state governments of the United St ...
Sheri McInvale in the Democratic primary. However, in 2006, McInvale switched to the Republican Party, and Randolph won the primary to oppose her against Eben Cowles Self with 61% of the vote. During the general election campaign, Randolph argued that, despite McInvale's moderate views, the Republican majority in the legislature would force her to stick to the party line. He attacked McInvale for literature that she had mailed out that included a picture of Randolph at an
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event with a drag queen with text underneath saying "Wrong for our Families," which Randolph took as homophobia. McInvale was endorsed by the ''
Orlando Sentinel The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is the primary newspaper of Orlando, Florida, and the Central Florida region, in the United States. It was founded in 1876 and is currently owned by Tribune Publishing Company. The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is owned by pare ...
'' over Randolph, which argued that Randolph "seems destined to be one of those loud back-benchers" who "offers little more than the Democratic Party line against school and Medicaid reform." Ultimately, Randolph defeated McInvale in a landslide with 63% of the vote. Randolph ran for re-election in 2010, facing former Orlando mayoral candidate Stephen Villard, the Republican nominee, in the general election. He campaigned on his work in energy efficiency in the legislature and his proposals to improve water systems, increase regulation on mortgage companies, and renovate older buildings to cut down on electricity costs. This time, Randolph was endorsed by the ''Sentinel'', which praised him as a "strong champion for education" and noted that he was a "work in progress" from his first legislative session. Randolph won re-election over Villard overwhelmingly, receiving 73% of the vote. In 2010, when Orange County Commissioner Mildred Fernandez was suspended from office after she was arrested on corruption charges, Randolph applied to fill the vacant seat. Though he met with then-Governor
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 ...
regarding an appointment to the County Commission, Crist ultimately decided to appoint Lui Damiani. Randolph ran for re-election a final time in 2010, and was opposed by realtor Greg Reynolds, the Republican nominee, and Lawanna Gelzer, an
independent Independent or Independents may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups * Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States * Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...
candidate. He campaigned on his efforts to overturn the gay adoption ban in place in the state and his opposition to the fee increases passed by the legislature, while Reynolds called for cutting regulation to create jobs. He was endorsed by the ''Sentinel'' once again, which called him out as "one of the Legislature's most principled members, who routinely manages to draw attention to risks the Legislature shouldn't be taking." Randolph ended up winning re-election handily, receiving 60% of the vote to Reynolds's 37% and Gelzer's 4%. During the 2011 legislative session, Randolph spoke out strongly against legislation that required women to undergo and view ultrasounds before terminating a pregnancy, telling a story about how viewing ultrasounds after his wife had miscarried was a traumatic experiencing, crying while he told the story. He was later criticized during a debate on union reforms, in which he argued that Republicans were against regulations, except when it came to social issues. He sarcastically suggested that his wife "incorporate her uterus" to stop Republican efforts to limit her reproductive health choices, at which point the
Speaker of the House The speaker of a deliberative assembly, especially a legislative body, is its presiding officer, or the chair. The title was first used in 1377 in England. Usage The title was first recorded in 1377 to describe the role of Thomas de Hung ...
stepped in, informing Randolph that his choice of language was inappropriate, as he referenced a body part, and that he should be conscious of the fact that "young pages and messengers" were in the chamber at the time." Following the trial of Casey Anthony and the attempts of one of the jurors to sell interviews in 2011, Randolph authored legislation that would have made it a third-degree felony for jury members to receive compensation to talk about their experience during the trial within 270 days of serving on a jury. Though he was eligible to seek a fourth term in 2012, he declined to do so, both because legislative redistricting moved him into an unfamiliar district and because he planned on running to be the next Chairman of the
Florida Democratic Party The Florida Democratic Party is the affiliate of the Democratic Party in the U.S. state of Florida, headquartered in Tallahassee. Former commissioner of agriculture Nikki Fried is the current chair. Andrew Jackson, the first territorial go ...
.


Orange County tax collector

In 2012, Orange County tax collector Earl K. Wood, a Democrat who had held office for 50 years, died during his re-election campaign. The Orange County Democratic Party had the responsibility of selecting a replacement candidate, though Wood's name remained on the ballot, and ended up picking Randolph. He faced Republican nominee Jim Huckeba in the abridged general election, and argued that his experience on the State House Finance and Tax Committee and that he was "an expert on tax policy" best qualified him for the office, arguing, "There are actually policies in play. It isn't just an administrative office." Huckeba attacked Randolph for "taking advantage of people who don't know that Earl has died" by campaigning with Wood's name, though Randolph responded that with so little time before the campaign, he could not have run a typical campaign. In the end, Randolph defeated Huckeba handily, winning with 57% of the vote. After he was elected, but before he was inaugurated, Randolph applied for a paying position in the tax collector's office to ease the transition, though he was attacked by local Republicans for accepting a salary while working. In April 2022, in response to the effort to repeal the
Reedy Creek Improvement Act The Reedy Creek Improvement Act, otherwise known as House Bill No. 486, was a law enacted in the U.S. state of Florida in 1967 establishing the area surrounding the Walt Disney World Resort (the Reedy Creek Improvement District) as its own coun ...
, Randolph stated that dissolving the
Reedy Creek Improvement District The Central Florida Tourism Oversight District (CFTOD), formerly the Reedy Creek Improvement District (RCID), is the governing jurisdiction and Special district (United States), special taxing district for the land of Walt Disney World Resort. It ...
would cost the county "$163 million per year" for debt payments and services.


External links


Florida House of Representatives – Scott RandolphOrange County Tax CollectorAbout Scott Randolph


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Randolph, Scott Democratic Party members of the Florida House of Representatives Living people 1973 births Politicians from Orlando, Florida 21st-century members of the Florida Legislature