Kenneth Hood "Buddy" MacKay Jr. (born March 22, 1933) is an American politician and diplomat who served as the 42nd

governor of Florida A governor is an administrative leader and head of a polity or political region, ranking under the head of state and in some cases, such as governors-general, as the head of state's official representative. Depending on the type of political ...

for 24 days from December 1998 to January 1999, upon the death of

Lawton Chiles Lawton Mainor Chiles Jr. (April 3, 1930 – December 12, 1998) was an American politician who served as the 41st governor of Florida from 1991 until his death in 1998. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served as a United State ...

. A member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

, he previously served as the 14th

lieutenant governor of Florida The lieutenant governor of Florida is a statewide elected office in the government of the U.S. state of Florida. According to the Florida Constitution, the lieutenant governor is elected to a four-year term congruent with that of the governor of ...

from 1991 to 1998. During his career, he also served as a

state legislator 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 S ...

, a

U.S. representative The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they c ...

, and

special envoy Diplomatic rank is a system of professional and social rank used in the world of diplomacy and international relations. A diplomat's rank determines many ceremonial details, such as the order of precedence at official processions, table seating ...

for

the Americas The Americas, which are sometimes collectively called America, are a landmass comprising the totality of North and South America. The Americas make up most of the land in Earth's Western Hemisphere and comprise the New World. Along with th ...

Early life

MacKay was born to a

citrus ''Citrus'' is a genus of flowering trees and shrubs in the rue family, Rutaceae. Plants in the genus produce citrus fruits, including important crops such as oranges, lemons, grapefruits, pomelos, and limes. The genus ''Citrus'' is native to ...

-farming family in Ocala, Florida, the son of Julia Elizabeth (Farnum) and Kenneth Hood MacKay. He served in the

United States Air Force The United States Air Force (USAF) is the Aerial warfare, air military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces, and is one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. Originally created on 1 August 1907, as a part ...

during the 1950s, and then attended the

University of Florida The University of Florida (Florida or UF) is a public land-grant research university in Gainesville, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida, traces its origins to 1853, and has operated continuously on its ...

, where he was tapped into

Florida Blue Key Florida Blue Key is a student leadership honor society at the University of Florida which was founded in 1923. History Founding and early years "Florida Blue Key was founded on November 1, 1923, several days prior to the University's Homeco ...

and eventually received a law degree. MacKay was inducted into the University of Florida Hall of Fame (the most prestigious honor a student can receive from UF) and was a member of The Board. He married Anne Selph in 1960; the couple has four sons.

Political career

MacKay was elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 1968, and to the

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

in 1974. From 1983 to 1989 he served for three terms in the

United States House of Representatives The United States House of Representatives, often referred to as the House of Representatives, the U.S. House, or simply the House, is the lower chamber of the United States Congress, with the Senate being the upper chamber. Together they ...

. In 1988 he received the Democratic nomination for the

United States Senate The United States Senate is the upper chamber of the United States Congress, with the House of Representatives being the lower chamber. Together they compose the national bicameral legislature of the United States. The composition and pow ...

, but lost in a very close race for that office to

Connie Mack III Cornelius Alexander McGillicuddy III (born October 29, 1940), also known as Connie Mack III, is an American retired Republican politician. He served as a member of the United States House of Representatives from Florida from 1983 to 1989 and t ...

Lieutenant governor

MacKay won the 1990 Democratic primary for lieutenant governor on the ticket headed by former U.S. Senator

, who had held the Senate seat MacKay had unsuccessfully sought two years earlier. They won the election and were re-elected in 1994, the latter campaign being a close contest against the

Republican Republican can refer to: Political ideology * An advocate of a republic, a type of government that is not a monarchy or dictatorship, and is usually associated with the rule of law. ** Republicanism, the ideology in support of republics or agains ...

ticket headed by

Jeb Bush John Ellis "Jeb" Bush (born February 11, 1953) is an American politician and businessman who served as the 43rd governor of Florida from 1999 to 2007. Bush, who grew up in Houston, was the second son of former President George H. W. Bush ...

As lieutenant governor, MacKay was co-chair of the Florida Commission on Education, Reform and Accountability. He was regarded as the most significant and powerful lieutenant governor in Florida's history. MacKay was a strong supporter of the use of

capital punishment Capital punishment, also known as the death penalty, is the state-sanctioned practice of deliberately killing a person as a punishment for an actual or supposed crime, usually following an authorized, rule-governed process to conclude that t ...

, as Chiles was. When he was asked during the 1998 gubernatorial election campaign about his positions on use of the death penalty and

electric chair An electric chair is a device used to execute an individual by electrocution. When used, the condemned person is strapped to a specially built wooden chair and electrocuted through electrodes fastened on the head and leg. This execution method, ...

in Florida, he replied: "I support the death penalty and support the use of the electric chair so long as it operates in a reliable fashion." However he suggested that Florida should change its mode of execution after

Pedro Medina Pedro Luis Medina (October 5, 1957 – March 25, 1997) was a Cuban refugee who was executed in Florida for the murder of a 52-year-old woman in Orlando. The circumstances of his execution elevated objections to the use of electrocution as a me ...

's botched execution, saying: "The last thing we want to do is generate sympathy for these killers."

Gubernatorial candidate

In 1998, MacKay sought to succeed the term-limited Chiles as governor, easily winning the Democratic nomination with his full support. However, MacKay secured only 44.7% of the vote, losing to

nominee

, who had narrowly lost the 1994 contest but secured 55.3% of the vote in 1998.

Governor

Despite his defeat, MacKay became Chiles' successor when Chiles died unexpectedly on December 12, 1998. MacKay was at this time in

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

with his wife. When they returned to their hotel room, they found a message about Chiles' death, asking MacKay to get on a plane to

Atlanta Atlanta ( ) is the capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Georgia. It is the seat of Fulton County, the most populous county in Georgia, but its territory falls in both Fulton and DeKalb counties. With a population of 498,715 ...

, where they were picked up by a state crew and flown through thick fog to

Tallahassee Tallahassee ( ) is the capital city of the U.S. state of Florida. It is the county seat and only incorporated municipality in Leon County. Tallahassee became the capital of Florida, then the Florida Territory, in 1824. In 2020, the population ...

. At 12.30 a.m. the next day, the 65-year-old MacKay was sworn in as Florida's 42nd governor at his Capitol office for the 24 days remaining in Chiles' term. "There's no great pleasure in this," said MacKay about taking a job he had sought, but got for a short time after his political partner's death. He also stated how sorry he was that he would be unable because of the short time and lack of mandate to take care of such issues as education and health care. Despite keeping a low public profile during his time as governor, MacKay made at least 56 appointments to various boards and to various offices, including two judgeships. He granted six pardons to female prisoners and was involved in such issues as the negotiation plan for the

Everglades The Everglades is a natural region of tropical wetlands in the southern portion of the U.S. state of Florida, comprising the southern half of a large drainage basin within the Neotropical realm. The system begins near Orlando with the Kissim ...

, and moderated some other disputes. Perhaps his most visible act as governor was signing Peggy Quince's nomination to the Florida Supreme Court. Quince was Chiles' last pick for the bench and it fell to MacKay, and then Bush, to sustain her nomination. MacKay was succeeded by Bush on January 5, 1999.

Diplomacy and later life

After his governorship ended, MacKay retired from active politics. He, however, remains publicly active. He was appointed by

President Clinton William Jefferson Clinton ( né Blythe III; born August 19, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 42nd president of the United States from 1993 to 2001. He previously served as governor of Arkansas from 1979 to 1981 and again ...

as a special envoy for the Americas, being the second person to hold this position. During his tenure he traveled to 26 countries in the Americas, working on issues such as the Free Trade Area of the Americas (FTAA), the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), the

Caribbean Basin Initiative The Caribbean Basin Initiative (CBI), a trade initiative initiated by the 1983 Caribbean Basin Economic Recovery Act (CBERA), is a United States program. The CBI came into effect on January 1, 1984, and aimed to provide several tariff and trade ben ...

(CBI), hemispheric security, strengthening the rule of law, labor standards, environmental policies and human rights. He attended a “Day with Florida Governors” symposium, organized by the

University of Central Florida The University of Central Florida (UCF) is a public research university whose main campus is in unincorporated Orange County, Florida. UCF also has nine smaller regional campuses throughout central Florida. It is part of the State University ...

and Louis Frey Institute on March 27, 2006, with Governor Bush and former governors Claude Roy Kirk Jr.,

Reubin Askew Reubin O'Donovan Askew (September 11, 1928 – March 13, 2014) was an Politics of the United States, American politician, who served as the 37th governor of Florida from 1971 to 1979. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic P ...

, Bob Graham and

Bob Martinez Robert Martinez (born December 25, 1934) is an American retired politician who served as the 40th governor of Florida from 1987 to 1991. A member of the Republican Party, Martinez was the first person of Spanish descent to be elected governor o ...

(

Wayne Mixson John Wayne Mixson (June 16, 1922 – July 8, 2020) was an American politician and farmer in Florida who served as the 12th lieutenant governor of Florida from 1979 to 1987, and as the 39th governor of Florida for three days in January 1987. M ...

, who served for three days after Graham's resignation, wasn't present). MacKay's memoir about his political career, ''How Florida Happened'', was published by the University Press of Florida in March 2010.

Electoral history

, 6th district (1974) * Buddy MacKay (D) – 26,418 (75.32%) * Charles E. Curtis (R) – 8,655 (24.68%) Florida Senate, 6th district (1978) * Buddy MacKay (D, Inc.) – elected unopposed United States Senate election in Florida, 1980 (Democratic primary) *

Richard Stone Sir John Richard Nicholas Stone (30 August 1913 – 6 December 1991) was an eminent British economist, educated at Westminster School and Gonville and Caius College and King's College at the University of Cambridge. In 1984, he was awarded ...

(Inc.) – 355,287 (32.08%) *

Bill Gunter William Dawson Gunter Jr. (born July 16, 1934) is an American politician from the state of Florida. Early life and education Gunter was born in Jacksonville in 1934. He attended public schools in Live Oak and received his Bachelor of Science i ...

– 335,859 (30.33%) * Buddy MacKay – 272,538 (24.61%) * Richard A. Pettigrew – 108,154 (9.77%) * James L. Miller – 18,118 (1.64%) * John B. Coffey – 17,410 (1.57%) Florida's 6th congressional district, 1982 * Buddy MacKay (D) – 85,825 (61.35%) * Ed Havill (R) – 54,059 (38.65%) Florida's 6th congressional district, 1984 * Buddy MacKay (D, Inc.) – 167,409 (99.30%) * Eric Tarnley (write-in) – 1,174 (0.70%) Florida's 6th congressional district, 1986 *Buddy MacKay (D, Inc.) – 143,598 (70.16%) * Larry Gallagher (R) – 61,069 (29.84%)

United States Senate election in Florida, 1988 The 1988 United States Senate election in Florida was held on November 8, 1988. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator Lawton Chiles decided to retire instead of seeking a fourth term. Republican Connie Mack III won the open seat, becoming the first ...

(Democratic primary) *

– 383,721 (38.00%) * Buddy MacKay – 263,946 (26.14%) *

Dan Mica Daniel Mica (born February 4, 1944) is an American politician who was a U.S. representative from the state of Florida. Education Daniel Mica attended the University of Florida, but received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Florida Atlantic Unive ...

– 179,524 (17.78%) *

Pat Frank Harry Hart "Pat" Frank (May 5, 1908 – October 12, 1964) was an American writer, newspaperman, and government consultant. Frank's best known work is the 1959 ''Alas, Babylon'', and '' Forbidden Area''. Biography Frank was born in Chicago ...

– 119,277 (11.81%) * Claude Roy Kirk Jr. – 51,387 (5.09%) * Fred Rader – 11,820 (1.17%) Florida United States Senate election, 1988 (Democratic runoff) * Buddy MacKay – 369,266 (52.00%) *Bill Gunter – 340,918 (48.00%) Florida United States Senate election, 1988 *

(R) – 2,051,071 (50.42%) * Buddy MacKay (D) – 2,016,553 (49.57%) * Adam Straus (write-in) – 585 (0.01%) Democratic primary for lieutenant governor, 1990 * Buddy MacKay – 746,325 (69.49%) *

Tom Gustafson Tom F. Gustafson Jr. (born October 9, 1949) is an American attorney and politician, who served as Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives from 1988 to 1990. A member of the Democratic Party, Gustafson served in the Florida House of Repres ...

– 327,731 (30.51%) Florida gubernatorial election, 1990 *

/Buddy MacKay (D) – 1,995,206 (56.51%) *

/ J. Allison DeFoor (R) – 1,535,068 (43.48%) Democratic primary for lieutenant governor, 1994 * Buddy MacKay (Inc.) – 603,657 (72.17%) * James H. King – 232,757 (27.83%)

Florida gubernatorial election, 1994 The 1994 Florida gubernatorial election was held on November 8, 1994. Incumbent governor Lawton Chiles, a Democratic Party (United States), Democrat, survived a strong challenge from businessman Jeb Bush, a Republican Party (United States), Repu ...

* Lawton Chiles/Buddy MacKay (D, Inc.) – 2,135,008 (50.75%) *

Tom Feeney Thomas Charles Feeney III (born May 21, 1958) is an American politician from Orlando, Florida. He represented . He was defeated in the 2008 election by Democrat Suzanne Kosmas. Early life He was born in Abington, Pennsylvania, a suburb of Phi ...

(R) – 2,071,068 (49.23%) Florida gubernatorial election, 1998 * Jeb Bush/

Frank Brogan Frank T. Brogan (born September 6, 1953) is the former Assistant Secretary of Education (Elementary and Secondary Education). He succeeded Deborah S. Delisle. He is the former Chancellor of the Pennsylvania State System of Higher Education, fo ...

(R) – 2,191,105 (55.27%) * Buddy MacKay/

Rick Dantzler Rick Dantzler (born January 1956) is an American lawyer, former Florida politician, and a member of the Democratic Party. From Winter Haven, Dantzler served in the Florida House of Representatives from 1982 to 1990, and in the Florida Senate ...

(D) – 1,773,054 (44.72%) Source
Our Campaigns – Candidate – Kenneth "Buddy" MacKay Jr.

References

External links

Official Governor's portrait and biography from the State of FloridaBiography from Congressional Bioguide
* , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Mackay, Buddy 1933 births American Presbyterians Democratic Party Florida state senators Democratic Party governors of Florida Lieutenant Governors of Florida Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from Florida Living people Democratic Party members of the Florida House of Representatives Military personnel from Florida Politicians from Ocala, Florida United States Air Force officers University of Florida alumni Writers from Florida 20th-century American politicians Fredric G. Levin College of Law alumni