Florida

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Florida
Capital Tallahassee
Nickname The Sunshine State
Official Language English
Governor Rick Scott, R
Senator Bill Nelson, D
(202) 224-5274
Contact
Senator Marco Rubio, R
(202) 224-3041
Contact
Ratification of Constitution/or statehood March 3, 1845 (27th)
Flag of Florida Motto: "In God We Trust"

Florida is located in the southeastern United States; it was purchased by the U.S. in 1819 and in 1845 became the 27th state to join the Union. The capital of Florida is Tallahassee, and the main metropolitan areas are Jacksonville, Miami, St. Petersburg and Orlando. Florida's nickname is the "Sunshine State", and its state tree is the "Sabal Palm." Florida has grown very rapidly, pulling in retirees from the cold, giving it the 3rd largest population of the 50 states.

Politics

Republican Senator Mel Martinez astonished Floridians by suddenly resigning in August 2009. Governor Charlie Crist appointed George LeMieux, age 40, who was Crist's campaign manager in 2006 and served as deputy attorney general of Florida when Crist was attorney general. LeMieux is regarded as one of the shrewdest political strategists in the state and, like Crist, is a moderate Republican. Crist then decided to run for the seat.

Crist was elected governor in 2006, running as a fiscal conservative and a moderate on social issues. His style is folksy and he searches for bipartisanship. His handling of the great hurricanes of 2005-6 was widely praised. He appointed one moderate and two conservatives to the state supreme court. His support for John McCain helped carry the state primary and played a role in giving the 2008 GOP nomination to McCain. He cut property taxes and cut the state budget, but annoyed some conservatives by his enthusiastic support for the Obama administration's stimulus bill in spring 2009. Polls show a strong base of support from conservatives and moderates and some liberals. Hpwever, Crist was defeated in the Republican Senate Primary in 2010; his rival in the GOP primary was state House Speaker Marco Rubio, a Cuban American.

Florida is a swing state in presidential elections.

History

Spain and Britain controlled Florida before 1819, but sent few settlers

Florida was first settled by Europeans in 1513, when Spaniard Juan Ponce de Leon landed near where St. Augustine stands today. For some time, Spain and France ran competing colonies in Florida, with the Spanish eventually expelling the French. Spain never had effective control and sold Florida to the United States in 1819. Florida seceded from the Union in 1861 and joined the Confederate States of America; there was little military action in the remote state.

Elected officials

Federal

Statewide

Metropolitan Areas

History

see History of Florida