Sharon J. Merchant (born August 30, 1963) is an American politician in 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 ...

. She was a representative 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 ...

for the 83rd district between 1993 and 2001.

Early life

Merchant was born on August 30, 1963, in

West Palm Beach, Florida West Palm Beach is a city in and the county seat of Palm Beach County, Florida, United States. It is located immediately to the west of the adjacent Palm Beach, which is situated on a barrier island across the Lake Worth Lagoon. The populati ...

. She received a bachelor's degree in international affairs, with a double minor in Spanish and business, from

Florida State University Florida State University (FSU) is a public research university in Tallahassee, Florida. It is a senior member of the State University System of Florida. Founded in 1851, it is located on the oldest continuous site of higher education in the st ...

in 1986. She worked as a legislative aide to Marian Lewis and as executive vice president for an equipment rental service.

Political career

Merchant was first elected to the

for the 83rd district in the 1992 general election. While in office, she served as the chair of the appropriations committee on transportation and economic development, the Palm Beach County Legislative Delegation, and as vice chair of 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 ...

caucus.

Later life

After leaving office, Merchant became the president of The Merchant Strategy Inc., a political consultancy, and was later appointed as a board member of the Palm Beach Gardens Medical Center.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Merchant, Sharon J. Florida State University alumni Republican Party members of the Florida House of Representatives 1963 births Living people Women state legislators in Florida 21st-century American women