Gwen Margolis (née Liedman; October 4, 1934 – June 9, 2020) was a Democratic politician 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 ...

. She served three different times in 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 ...

: from 1980 to 1992, 2002 to 2008, and 2010 to 2016. She served as

Senate President President of the Senate is a title often given to the presiding officer of a senate. It corresponds to the speaker in some other assemblies. The senate president often ranks high in a jurisdiction's succession for its top executive office: for ex ...

for the 1990–92 term, becoming the first woman president and the last president to preside over a majority-Democratic chamber. Prior to her time in the Senate, she serve three terms in 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 ...

, from 1974 to 1980. Margolis left state government in 1992, losing to E. Clay Shaw, Jr. in an unsuccessful bid for the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washing ...

. Thereafter she became a County Commissioner for Dade (now

Miami-Dade Miami-Dade County is a county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Florida. The county had a population of 2,701,767 as of the 2020 census, making it the most populous county in Florida and the seventh-most populous county in ...

) County until she returned to the State Senate. She was previously married to Allan Margolis. She was a candidate for the position of

Miami-Dade County Miami-Dade County is a county located in the southeastern part of the U.S. state of Florida. The county had a population of 2,701,767 as of the 2020 census, making it the most populous county in Florida and the seventh-most populous county in ...

Property Appraiser in 2008. She received the most votes in the November 4, 2008, general election. However, due to not having received at least fifty percent of the vote plus one, she had to face the next highest vote-getter, Pedro Garcia Jr., in a December 16, 2008 run-off. She filed a lawsuit to avoid the run-off election, arguing that because the appraiser's office is a constitutional position, no runoff should be required under state law. Her lawsuit was unable to prevent the runoff election, which she lost to Garcia. Margolis again ran for the Florida Senate in 2010. She received the nomination of the Democratic Party on August 24, 2010, defeating

Kevin Burns Kevin Burns (June 18, 1955September 27, 2020), was an American television and film producer, director, and screenwriter. His work can be seen on A&E, National Geographic Channel, E!, Animal Planet, AMC, Bravo, WE tv, Travel Channel, Lifetim ...

in the primary. Following a

redistricting Redistribution (re-districting in the United States and in the Philippines) is the process by which electoral districts are added, removed, or otherwise changed. Redistribution is a form of boundary delimitation that changes electoral dist ...

lawsuit that radically changed the makeup of her senate district, Margolis announced in June 2016 that she was ending her reelection campaign. She retired from politics after the 2016 election. Gwen Margolis died at the age of 85 on June 9, 2020.

References

External links

*''Follow the Money'' - Gwen Margolis
200620042002
campaign contributions County commissioners in Florida Democratic Party Florida state senators Democratic Party members of the Florida House of Representatives Presidents of the Florida Senate 1934 births 2020 deaths Women state legislators in Florida Jewish American state legislators in Florida Politicians from Philadelphia 21st-century American Jews 21st-century American women {{Florida-politician-stub