John Tobia (born January 6, 1978) is an American

Republican Party Republican Party is a name used by many political parties around the world, though the term most commonly refers to the United States' Republican Party. Republican Party may also refer to: Africa *Republican Party (Liberia) * Republican Part ...

politician who served 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 ...

, representing the 53rd District, which includes southern

Brevard County Brevard County ( ) is a county located in the east central portion of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 606,612, making it the 10th-most populated county in Florida. The official county seat is located in T ...

, from 2012 to 2016, previously representing the 31st District from 2008 to 2012.

History

Tobia was born in

Honolulu, Hawaii Honolulu (; ) is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Hawaii, which is in the Pacific Ocean. It is an unincorporated county seat of the consolidated City and County of Honolulu, situated along the southeast coast of the island o ...

, and moved to the state of

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 ...

in 1990. He 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 received both his

bachelor's A bachelor's degree (from Middle Latin ''baccalaureus'') or baccalaureate (from Modern Latin ''baccalaureatus'') is an undergraduate academic degree awarded by colleges and universities upon completion of a course of study lasting three to six ye ...

and

master's degree A master's degree (from Latin ) is an academic degree awarded by universities or colleges upon completion of a course of study demonstrating mastery or a high-order overview of a specific field of study or area of professional practice.

s in political science. Following graduation, he began working as a professor at

Valencia College Valencia College is a public college in Orlando, Florida. It is part of the Florida College System. The college was founded in 1967 as Valencia Junior College and changed its name in 2010 because the academic scope of the school had expanded to i ...

, teaching introductory political science courses.

Florida House of Representatives

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 ...

Mitch Needelman was unable to seek re-election in 2008 due to

term limit A term limit is a legal restriction that limits the number of terms an officeholder may serve in a particular elected office. When term limits are found in presidential and semi-presidential systems they act as a method of curbing the potenti ...

s, Tobia ran to succeed him in the 31st District, which stretched from

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to South Patrick Shores. He faced Jason Steele, Ronald Stump, and Ken Babington in 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 ...

primary, and emerged narrowly victorious, winning 32% of the vote to Steele's 31%, Stump's 22%, and Babington's 15%, despite facing allegations that he allowed his college students to "skip their final exam...if they would volunteer for his campaign". He advanced to the general election, where he was elected unopposed. In 2010, he was challenged in the primary by

Indialantic Indialantic (officially incorporated as Indialantic-By-The-Sea, though the official name is seldom used in casual parlance) is a town in Brevard County, Florida. The town's population was 2,720 at the 2010 United States Census. It is part of the ...

City Councilwoman Lori Halbert, who accused him over the course of the campaign of committing acts of vandalism against her, including stealing her campaign signs, trespassing on her property, and flattening the tires of someone parked at her house, charges that Tobia denied. He defeated Halbert by 193 votes, winning 51% of the vote to Halbert's 49%. In the general election, he faced Jodi James, 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 ...

'' roundly criticized both candidates, declaring that "voters in this Brevard County district deserve better than Republican Rep. John Tobia", in part because he made "inappropriate comments about women in his lectures." However, James had a prior conviction for drug trafficking, causing them to reluctantly endorse the incumbent for re-election. Tobia defeated James in a landslide, winning 62% of the vote. In 2012, when legislative districts were redrawn, Tobia was drawn into the 53rd District, which included most of the territory that he previously represented. He was challenged in the

primary by Tres Holton and Laureen Trent, whom he defeated with 52% of the vote. In the general election, he encountered Democratic nominee John Paul Alvarez. ''

Florida Today ''Florida Today'' is the major daily newspaper serving Brevard County, Florida. Al Neuharth of the Gannett corporation started the paper in 1966, and some of the things he did with this newspaper presaged what he would later do at USA Today. I ...

'' endorsed him for re-election, praising his "independent streak" and his "support of education issues," while noting that Alvarez was not as informed on state issues. Tobia narrowly defeated Alvarez on election night, winning 53% of the vote to Alvarez's 47%. According to the

Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...

, Tobia and Congressman

Matt Gaetz Matthew Louis Gaetz II ( ; born May 7, 1982) is an American lawyer and politician who has served as the U.S. representative for since 2017. A Republican, he has been described as an ally of former president Donald Trump, as well as a proponent ...

were the only two members of the Florida House to vote against the 2015 revenge porn bill. Tobia and Gaetz had previously been roommates in

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 ...

References

External links

Florida House of Representatives - John Tobia
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tobia, John 1978 births Living people Republican Party members of the Florida House of Representatives Politicians from Honolulu People from Melbourne, Florida University of Florida alumni