Debbie Mayfield (born December 2, 1956) is an American politician serving as 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 ...

member of 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 ...

who has represented the 17th district, which includes Indian River and southern Brevard Counties, since 2016. She previously served four 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 ...

, representing parts of the

Treasure Coast The Treasure Coast is a region of the U.S. state of Florida. It is located on Florida's East Coast, bordering the Atlantic Ocean and comprising Indian River, Martin, and St. Lucie counties. The region, whose name refers to the Spanish Treasure ...

from 2008 to 2016. She has been majority leader since 2020.

History

Mayfield was born in

Pensacola Pensacola () is the westernmost city in the Florida Panhandle, and the county seat and only incorporated city of Escambia County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the population was 54,312. Pensacola is the principal ci ...

, and grew up there, attending

Pensacola High School Pensacola High School is a secondary school located near downtown Pensacola, Florida, United States. The school celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2001 and graduated its 100th class of seniors in 2005; however, the school has not always been at ...

. She moved to

Vero Beach Vero Beach is a city in and the seat of Indian River County, Florida, United States. Vero Beach is the second most populous city in Indian River County. Abundant in beaches and wildlife, Vero Beach is located on Florida's Treasure Coast. It is thi ...

in 1989, and began working for

Barnett Bank Barnett Bank was an American bank based in Florida. Founded in 1877, it eventually became the largest commercial bank in Florida with over 600 offices and $41.2 billion in deposits. Barnett was purchased by NationsBank in 1997.Ginzl, David: "The ...

, eventually rising up to Senior Vice-President of Residential Lending. Mayfield eventually left the bank to start the Mayfield Group, a mortgage brokerage firm that she owned and operated. She now lives in

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

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 ...

Stan Mayfield, her husband, was unable to seek re-election in 2008 due to term limits, she ran to succeed him in the 80th District, which ran along the

, including northern St. Lucie County, eastern

Indian River County Indian River County ( es, Condado de Río Indio, link=) is a county located in the Treasure Coast region of the U.S. state of Florida. As of the 2020 census, the population was 159,788. Its seat is Vero Beach. It is Florida's 7th richest county ...

, and southeastern

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 ...

. She won the

primary unopposed, and advanced to the general election, where she faced Neal Abarbanell, the Democratic nominee. During the course of the campaign, Mayfield's husband, who was running for

Tax Collector, died of cancer. Despite this, Mayfield ended up defeating Abarbanell by a wide margin of victory, winning 64% of the vote. In 2010, she was challenged in the

primary by Art Argenio and Bradley Ward, who hammered Mayfield for being insufficiently conservative, despite the fact that she voted "consistently with the GOP majority." Mayfield ended defeating both of them handily, winning 52% of the vote to Argenio's 34% and Ward's 15%, and in the general election, she only faced write-in opposition, winning easily. In 2012, when state legislative districts were redrawn, Mayfield was moved into the 54th District, which included much of the territory that she had previously represented in the 80th District. She won both the primary and general election entirely unopposed.

Florida Senate

In 2016, Mayfield ran for the Florida Senate seat vacated by

Thad Altman Thad Altman (born September 8, 1955) is a Republican Party (United States), Republican politician who currently serves as a member of the Florida House of Representatives, representing parts of the Melbourne, Florida, Melbourne area in central Br ...

, who was term limited. She defeated fellow state representative

Ritch Workman Ritch Workman (born May 3, 1973) is a former Republican member of the Florida House of Representatives, who represented the 52nd District, which includes southern Brevard County, stretching from Melbourne to Palm Shores, from 2012 to 2016, and ...

in the Republican primary, 42 to 35%, and Democrat Amy Tidd in the general election, 62 to 38%. In 2020, President of the Senate

Wilton Simpson Wilton Simpson (born June 28, 1966) is an American politician and Agriculture Commissioner-elect of Florida. From 2012 to 2022, he served as a member of the Florida Senate, representing areas around Citrus, Hernando, and Pasco Counties. He was ...

appointed Mayfield as Majority Leader.

References

External links

Florida Senate - Debbie MayfieldFlorida House of Representatives - Debbie Mayfield
, - , - , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Mayfield, Debbie 1956 births 21st-century American politicians 21st-century American women politicians Businesspeople from Florida Republican Party Florida state senators Living people Republican Party members of the Florida House of Representatives People from Pensacola, Florida People from Vero Beach, Florida Women state legislators in Florida