Eric Eisnaugle (born February 6, 1977) is an American politician and judge from

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

. A

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 ...

, he has served as a judge on Florida's Fifth District Court of Appeal since 2017. Previously, he was 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, adopted ...

, representing parts of western

Orange County Orange County most commonly refers to: *Orange County, California, part of the Los Angeles metropolitan area Orange County may also refer to: U.S. counties *Orange County, Florida, containing Orlando *Orange County, Indiana *Orange County, New ...

from April 2014 until his appointment to the bench. He served a prior stint in the Florida House from 2008 to 2012.

Early life

Eisnaugle was born in

Arcadia, Florida Arcadia is a city and county seat of DeSoto County, Florida, United States. Its population was 7,637 as of the 2010 census, with an estimated population of 7,722 in 2014. Arcadia's Historic District is listed on the National Register of Histor ...

on February 6, 1977. He received a

Bachelor of Science A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years. The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...

degree in 2000 from

Florida Southern College Florida Southern College (Florida Southern, Southern or FSC) is a private college in Lakeland, Florida. In 2019, the student population at FSC consisted of 3,073 students along with 130 full-time faculty members. The college offers 50 undergradu ...

and a

Juris Doctor The Juris Doctor (J.D. or JD), also known as Doctor of Jurisprudence (J.D., JD, D.Jur., or DJur), is a graduate-entry professional degree in law and one of several Doctor of Law degrees. The J.D. is the standard degree obtained to practice law ...

from

Vanderbilt University Law School Vanderbilt University Law School (also known as Vanderbilt Law School or VLS) is a graduate school of Vanderbilt University. Established in 1874, it is one of the oldest law schools in the southern United States. Vanderbilt Law School has consiste ...

in 2003. His wife, originally from

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

, is attorney Carrie Eisnaugle, the President of Florida Right to Life.

Florida House of Representatives

2008-2012

When 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 Sta ...

Andy Gardiner Andy Gardiner (born January 23, 1969) is a Republican politician who served as a member of the Florida Senate, representing the 9th District from 2008 to 2012, and the 13th District, which stretches from Orlando to Titusville, from 2012 to 2016. ...

was unable to seek re-election due to term limits, Eisnaugle ran to succeed him in the 40th District, which stretched from Azalea Park to Lake Butler and Hunters Creek in central

. He faced Joe Mantilla in the

primary, whom he was able to defeat with ease, winning 68% of the vote to Mantilla's 32%. In the general election, Eisnaugle faced Todd Christian, the Democratic nominee. The ''

Orlando Sentinel The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is the primary newspaper of Orlando, Florida, and the Central Florida region. It was founded in 1876 and is currently owned by Tribune Publishing Company. The ''Orlando Sentinel'' is owned by parent company, '' Tribune P ...

'', though noting "discomfort with some of Mr. Eisnaugle's positions," endorsed him over Christian, praised him as an "engaging candidate" with "some good ideas." In the end, Eisnaugle managed to defeat Christian by a slim margin to earn his first term in the legislature, receiving 52% of the vote to Christian's 48%. Running for re-election in 2010, Eisnaugle faced Christian once again, and

Tea Party A tea party is a social gathering event held in the afternoon. For centuries, many societies have cherished drinking tea with a company at noon. Tea parties are considered for formal business meetings, social celebrations or just as an afternoon ...

candidate Darin Dunmire; Eisnaugle once again received the endorsement of the ''Sentinel'', which praised him as "one of the Legislature's more thoughtful workhorses," and singled him out for bucking those in his party who wanted to abolish the State Department of Community Affairs. Once again, Eisnaugle defeated Christian, but this time by a more comfortable margin, receiving 60% of the vote to Christian's 36% and Dunmire's 4%. In 2012, following the reconfiguration of state legislative districts, Eisnaugle was moved into the 44th District, where fellow

Steve Precourt Stephen L. Precourt (born October 20, 1960) was a Republican member of the Florida House of Representatives from 2006 to 2014, representing the 41st District from 2006 to 2012, and the 44th District from 2012 to 2014, when he resigned. History ...

was running for re-election to his fourth and final term. With the knowledge that Precourt would be unable to run again in 2014, Eisnaugle stepped aside, and began campaigning to run as Precourt's successor.

2014-2017

Following his departure from the legislature, Eisnaugle joined the law offices of Rumberger, Kirk and Caldwell, practicing commercial litigation and appellate law. With an eye on running for the legislature in the 44th District in 2014, Eisnaugle continued his fundraising and campaigning efforts, predicting that his "conservative message" about reducing the size of government and cutting taxes would resonate with the voters. In 2014, when Precourt resigned to accept a job with the

Orlando–Orange County Expressway Authority The Central Florida Expressway Authority (CFX) is a highway authority responsible for construction, maintenance and operation of toll roads in six counties of Greater Orlando (Lake, Orange, Osceola, Polk, Seminole, and Brevard Counties). It was ...

, a special election was held and Eisnaugle ran to succeed him. In the

primary, he defeated former Orange County School Board Member Vicky Bell with 85% of the vote and advanced to the general election, where he faced Shaun Raja, a businessman and the Democratic nominee. Owing to the conservative nature of the district, Eisnaugle defeated Raja in a landslide, winning his return to the legislature with 74% of the vote. Even before he returned to the legislature, Eisnaugle donated tens of thousands of dollars to fellow Republicans running for the legislature, with the implicit aim of lining up supporters for his bid for the Speakership of the

for the 2020-2022 legislative session. Former

Lieutenant Governor A lieutenant governor, lieutenant-governor, or vice governor is a high officer of state, whose precise role and rank vary by jurisdiction. Often a lieutenant governor is the deputy, or lieutenant, to or ranked under a governor — a "second-in-comm ...

Toni Jennings criticized Eisnaugle's plan, noting that he was getting ahead of himself and declaring, "Talk about the tail wagging the dog. This tail is so far ahead of itself, it can't even see the dog anymore." Eisnaugle won reelection to his seat in the 2014 elections, defeating Independent Matthew Falconer. He was subsequently re-elected unopposed in 2016.

Fifth District Court of Appeal

After Judge C. Alan Lawson was appointed by Governor

Rick Scott Richard Lynn Scott ( Myers, born December 1, 1952) is an American politician serving as the junior United States senator from Florida since 2019. A member of the Republican Party, he was the 45th governor of Florida from 2011 to 2019. Scott ...

to the

Florida Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Florida is the highest court in the U.S. state of Florida. It consists of seven members: the chief justice and six justices. Six members are chosen from six districts around the state to foster geographic diversity, and one ...

, Eisnaugle applied for Lawson's vacant seat on the Fifth District Court of Appeal. He was one of six finalists forwarded by the Judicial Nominating Commission to Scott, and on May 8, 2017, Scott appointed him to the court.

Sources

External links

Florida House of Representatives - Representative Eric EisnaugleEisnaugle for State House
{{DEFAULTSORT:Eisnaugle, Eric Republican Party members of the Florida House of Representatives 1977 births Living people Florida lawyers People from Arcadia, Florida Florida Southern College alumni Vanderbilt University Law School alumni 21st-century American politicians