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'{{Infobox State Senator | name=Matt Gaetz | image name=Matt Gaetz.jpg | state_house=Florida | state=Florida | district=1st | term_start=April 15, 2010 | term_end= | preceded=[[Ray Sansom]] | succeeded=Incumbent | birth_date={{birth date and age|1982|05|07}} | birth_place=[[Hollywood, Florida]] | death_date= | death_place= | alma_mater=[[Florida State University]] (B.S.)<br>[[College of William and Mary]] (J.D.) | profession=Attorney | residence = [[Fort Walton Beach, Florida]] | religion=[[Baptists|Baptist]] | party=[[Republican Party (United States)|Republican Party]] |}} '''Matthew "Matt" Gaetz''' (born May 7, 1982, in [[Hollywood, Florida]]) is a [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] member of the [[Florida House of Representatives]], representing the 1st District, which includes most of [[Okaloosa County, Florida|Okaloosa County]], since 2010. Gaetz is the son of Florida politician [[Don Gaetz]], who has been a member of the [[Florida Senate]] since 2006 and the President of the Senate since 2012. Since the age of nine years old, his [[penis]] has stopped developing as normal, and he has been blaming [[African Americans]] for it since, as a symptom of his [[white fragility]]. ==Early life and education== Gaetz graduated from [[Florida State University]] in 2003 and from The [[College of William and Mary]] in 2007 with a [[juris doctor]].<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.martindale.com/Matthew-Gaetz/24932780-lawyer.htm|title=Matthew Gaetz|work=[[Martindale-Hubbell]]|accessdate=11 July 2015}}</ref> ==Florida House of Representatives== In 2010, following the resignation of [[Republican Party (United States)|Republican]] [[Florida House of Representatives|State Representative]] [[Ray Sansom]], who had briefly served as the [[Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives]], due to corruption charges,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/news/state-regional/florida-house-speaker-ray-sansom-resigns/nL4q6/|title=Florida House Speaker Ray Sansom resigns|date=February 21, 2010|accessdate=May 2, 2014|work=[[The Palm Beach Post]]|first=Michael|last=Bender}}</ref> Gaetz ran in the special election to succeed Sansom in the 1st District, which included southern [[Santa Rosa County, Florida|Santa Rosa County]] and [[Okaloosa County, Florida|Okaloosa County]]. In a crowded Republican primary that included Craig Barker, Kabe Woods, former State Representative Jerry Melvin, and Bill Garvie, Gaetz emerged victorious with 43% of the vote. In the special general election, Gaetz defeated [[Democratic Party (United States)|Democratic]] nominee Jan Fernald in a landslide, winning 66% of the vote. He was re-elected without opposition in 2010. In 2012, following the reconfiguration of [[Florida House of Representatives]] districts, Gaetz's 4th District had the [[Santa Rosa County, Florida|Santa Rosa County]] portions removed. He ran for re-election there and won unopposed. Gaetz was re-elected in 2014 without opposition. While serving in the [[Florida House of Representatives]], Gaetz joined with [[Florida State Senate|State Senator]] [[Joe Negron]] to propose legislation that is "designed to accelerate the execution of many of the 404 inmates on Florida's death row" by requiring the Governor to sign a death warrant for those inmates who have exhausted their appeals,<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tampabay.com/news/courts/criminal/florida-house-approves-speeding-up-executions/2117426|title=Florida House approves speeding up executions|date=April 25, 2013|accessdate=May 2, 2014|work=[[Tampa Bay Times]]|first=Mary Ellen|last=Klas}}</ref> noting, "Only God can judge. But we can sure set up the meeting."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.slate.com/blogs/crime/2013/11/07/matt_gaetz_meet_the_aggressive_ideologue_who_s_chairing_florida_s_stand.html|title=Meet the Uncompromising Ideologue Chairing Florida's "Stand Your Ground" Hearings|date=November 7, 2013|accessdate=May 2, 2014|work=[[Slate (magazine)|Slate]]|first=Justin|last=Peters}}</ref> He also joined forces with State Senator [[Greg Evers]] to repeal legislation that requires that 10% of gasoline sold in [[Florida]] contain [[ethanol]], saying, "This is the bill that removes and repeals Florida's burdensome ethanol mandate."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://news.wfsu.org/post/ethanol-fuels-evaporate-under-house-bill|title=Ethanol Fuels To Evaporate Under House Bill|date=April 12, 2013|accessdate=May 2, 2014|work=[[WFSU-TV]]|first=Tom|last=Flanigan}}</ref> Following the trial of [[George Zimmerman]] for the shooting of [[Trayvon Martin]], [[Will Weatherford]], the Speaker of the [[Florida House of Representatives]], announced that he would order hearings on the "stand your ground" law that was raised as an issue during the trial.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tampabay.com/news/politics/legislature/weatherford-calls-for-hearings-on-stand-your-ground/2134563|title=Weatherford calls for hearings on 'stand your ground'|date=August 2, 2013|accessdate=May 2, 2014|work=[[Tampa Bay Times]]|first=Michael|last=Van Sickler}}</ref> Gaetz, the Chairman of the Criminal Justice Subcommittee, was tasked with reviewing the legislation, and announced before hearings that he would not support changing "one damn comma," though he indicated that he would listen to both sides' testimony during the hearings.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.tampabay.com/blogs/the-buzz-florida-politics/matt-gaetz-to-rally-base-ahead-of-syg-hearing/2137830|title=Matt Gaetz to rally base ahead of Stand Your Ground hearing|date=August 22, 2013|accessdate=May 2, 2014|work=[[Tampa Bay Times]]|first=Tia|last=Mitchell}}</ref> Following the conclusion of the hearings, he authored legislation that would allow defendants who successfully used a "stand your ground" defense during their trial "to apply for a 'certificate of eligibility' to expunge information related to 'stand your ground' from their criminal records."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2014/3/25/amendment-would-cutjournalistsaccesstostandyourgroundrecords.html|title=Proposed 'stand your ground' amendment would expunge records|date=March 25, 2014|accessdate=May 2, 2014|work=[[Al Jazeera America]]|first=Dexter|last=Mullins}}</ref> When his subcommittee was considering legislation that would "keep mug shots of people who are charged with crimes off the Internet until they are convicted," Gaetz brought up his 2008 arrest for [[driving under the influence]], arguing that his mistakes made him who he is and that publicly available mug shots "could be a problem for those unaccustomed to publicity."<ref>{{cite web|url=http://miamiherald.typepad.com/nakedpolitics/2014/02/matt-gaetz-wants-to-talk-about-his-mug-shot-but-not-his-arrest-.html|title=Matt Gaetz wants to talk about his mug shot, but not his arrest|date=February 18, 2014|accessdate=May 2, 2014|work=[[Miami Herald]]|first=Michael|last=Van Sickler}}</ref> Gaetz was re-elected unopposed to his third term in the legislature in 2014. ==Florida Senate== Gaetz announced that he would run for the [[Florida Senate]] in the 1st District, currently held by his father, [[Florida Senate|State Senator]] [[Don Gaetz]], in 2016, when his father is term-limited.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.sunshinestatenews.com/story/matt-gaetz-makes-it-official-will-shoot-dads-senate-seat-2016|title=Matt Gaetz Makes It Official, Will Shoot for Dad's Senate Seat in 2016|date=May 13, 2013|accessdate=May 2, 2014|work=Sunshine State News|first=Jeff|last=Henderson}}</ref> On March 21, 2016 Gaetz withdrew to run for [[florida's 1st congressional district|Florida's 1st Congressional District]], since [[Jeff Miller (Florida politician)|Jeff Miller]] is not seeking reelection.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://miamiherald.typepad.com/nakedpolitics/2016/03/matt-gaetz-launches-bid-for-congress-handing-fathers-state-senate-seat-to-george-gainer.html|title=Matt Gaetz launches bid for Congress, handing fathers state Senate seat to George Gainer|date=March 21, 2016|work=Miami Herald|first=Kristen|last=Clark}}</ref> ==U.S. House of Representatives== {{Infobox person |name=Matt Gaetz Campaign Mailer |image=Matt_Gaetz_Mailer.jpg |caption=Matt Gaetz' Policy Positions }} On March 21, 2016 Matt Gaetz declared he would be seeking [[Florida's 1st congressional district|Florida's 1st Congressional District]] after [[Jeff Miller (Florida politician)|Jeff Miller]] announced he would not seek reelection. On August 30, 2016 Matt Gaetz won the [[Florida's 1st congressional district|Florida 1st Congressional District]] GOP primary with 35.7% of the vote - defeating [[Greg Evers]] (21.5%), Cris Dosev (20.6%), and five other candidates.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.politico.com/2016-election/results/map/house/florida|title=Florida House Races Results|accessdate=September 6, 2016|work=Politico}}</ref> ==References== {{reflist}} ==External links== *[http://www.myfloridahouse.gov/Sections/Representatives/details.aspx?MemberId=4478&SessionId=73 Florida House of Representatives - Matt Gaetz] *[http://www.mattgaetz.com/ Matt Gaetz for State Representative] {{Florida House of Representatives}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Gaetz, Matt}} [[Category:1982 births]] [[Category:Living people]] [[Category:Members of the Florida House of Representatives]] [[Category:People from Hollywood, Florida]] [[Category:People from Fort Walton Beach, Florida]] [[Category:Florida State University alumni]] [[Category:William & Mary School of Law alumni]] [[Category:Florida Republicans]]'