Mike Haridopolos

Mike Haridopolos (born March 15, 1970) served as President of the Florida Senate from 2010 to 2012, presiding over the largest Republican majority (28-12) since Reconstruction. He also served in the Florida House of Representatives from 2000 to 2003. He now operates MJH Consulting, a leading consulting firm in Florida.[1]

Mike Haridopolos
President of the Florida Senate
In office
November 2010 – November 2012
Preceded byJeff Atwater
Succeeded byDon Gaetz
Member of the Florida Senate
from the 26th district
In office
2003–2012
Preceded byHoward Futch
Succeeded byBill Galvano
Member of the Florida House of Representatives
from the 30th district
In office
2000–2003
Preceded byHoward Futch
Succeeded byThad Altman
Personal details
Born (1970-03-15) March 15, 1970
Huntington, New York, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
Spouse(s)Stephanie Haridopolos
Alma materStetson University
University of Arkansas, Fayetteville

Education

Haridopolos received his Bachelor of Arts degree from Stetson University in History and his Master of Arts degree in History from the University of Arkansas.

Teaching career

Haridopolos taught United States History and Political Science at Brevard Community College—now Eastern Florida State College—starting in 1993. In 1998, he co-authored the book 10 Big Issues Facing Our Generation with fellow instructor Dr. Amy Hendricks. The book includes liberal and conservative viewpoints, and discusses issues such as Medicare, Medicaid, education, taxes, national defense and Social Security.[2]

Beginning in 2007, Haridopolos taught classes as an instructor at the Bob Graham Center at the University of Florida. He created an internship program for university students to work in the legislative process at the Florida State Capitol in Tallahassee. Students took classes early in the morning then worked in the Governor's office, legislative offices and in different agencies or consulting firms. Students who participated in the program now work in the legislative process in Florida and around the nation.

Political career

Before being elected to the Senate, Haridopolos was a member of the Florida House of Representatives from 2001 through 2003. In 2006, he was on the shortlist to run for Lieutenant Governor of Florida as the running mate of Republican nominee Charlie Crist.[3]

In 2008, Haridopolos declined to run for the U.S. House of Representatives in Florida's 15th congressional district in order to focus on his coming role as Senate President and his goal to make the Florida Senate more conservative. Republicans gained control of the Senate in 1994. Haridopolos actively supported conservative candidates throughout the state over the last three election cycles.[4]

Haridopolos was sworn in as Senate President on November 16, 2010, for a two-year term. He presides over the largest Republican majority since Reconstruction.[5] Before being sworn in, Haridopolos made headlines when he removed the doors from his Senate office, making a pledge to be transparent and accessible during his term as President.[6]

Haridopolos is a co-founder of the Freedom Caucus that signs Americans for Tax Reform's Taxpayer Protection Pledge to "oppose and vote against any and all efforts to increase taxes" every year before the Legislature goes into session.[7]

Haridopolos has appeared on Fox News' Huckabee to discuss Transparency Florida, an initiative he led to put the state budget online. He has also appeared on CNN as a guest of Lou Dobbs and has been featured in Florida Trend magazine as a legislator "...who could shape Florida politics". He was also recently named by the Hotline as one of six "rising stars" among Republican state legislators.

Haridopolos sought the Republican nomination to challenge incumbent U.S. Senator Bill Nelson in 2012.[8][9] The Washington Post has identified Haridopolos as "one of the state Republican Party's rising stars."[10] The Sunshine State News called him "Telegenic and energetic,…a rising star in the party, a relentless campaigner and a bona fide conservative who would draw a sharp philosophical contrast to Nelson."[11] On July 18, 2011, Haridopolos released a campaign video stating that he would no longer seek the nomination for the 2012 U.S. Senate seat, effectively ending his campaign.[12]

During his campaign for U.S. Senate, Haridopolos out-fundraised his Republican opponents, raising a total of $3.6 million.[13] His candidacy received a number of endorsements, including former Arkansas Governor Mike Huckabee, US Congressman Connie Mack, CFO Jeff Atwater, and Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam.[14][15][16][17] He suddenly dropped out of the campaign in July 2011, amid questions over his personal finances and a $75,000-a-year no-show job he was given by the University of Florida.

Senate President Mike Haridopolos

Conservative agenda

Haridopolos became Senate President with the largest Republican majority since reconstruction.

During his first term as Senate President, he oversaw the balancing of the state's budget which suffered a $4 billion shortfall, without raising taxes or fees. Beyond that the Senate also authorized SmartCap, a constitutional amendment that, if adopted, will place strict caps on government spending, as well as the Health Care Freedom Amendment which fights back against the government takeover of health care.

That same year, the Senate also passed more than $300 million in tax relief, including a measure that effectively eliminates the corporate income tax burden for nearly half the roughly 30,000 Florida businesses that currently pay the tax; reformed Florida's entitlement programs, including the state's pension, welfare and Medicaid systems; reformed the state's education system; tightened regulations on unauthorized sales of habit-forming drugs; and reformed the state's growth management laws.

The Orlando Sentinel called the passage of these various measures "…some of the most conservative legislation ever passed out of the state Senate..." [18]

During the 2012 Legislative Session, Haridopolos enumerated his goals. The News Service of Florida reported that "…he [Haridopolos] said the three things he wanted to pass, aside from the two claims bills, were the governor's three big priorities: the increased K-12 education spending, the PIP auto insurance reform, and the tax cut and economic development package. Adding those three to the claims bills, he was five-for-five.[19]

Defending the innocent

In 2010, Haridopolos began to pursue the creation of an innocence commission. The Orlando Sentinel reported that the commission "would study Florida's disturbing practice of imprisoning innocent people." [20]

The same article noted that "…few [lawmakers], however, make lasting impacts — and life-changing differences. Right now, State Sen. Mike Haridopolos is leading a charge to make such a difference."[20] Haridopolos did ultimately secure funding for the creation of the Innocence Commission.

In 2005, Haridopolos supported Wilton Dedge's claim. Dedge had been tried, convicted and wrongfully imprisoned for 22 years. He was exonerated by DNA testing in August 2004. The claim bill, which awarded Dedge $2 million in compensation, passed in the Florida Legislature during a special session in 2005.[21]

In 2012, Haridopolos helped pass two claims bills to compensate victims of government negligence.

One was a claim for William Dillon, who had been wrongfully incarcerated for 27 years. He was exonerated after DNA testing. He was compensated $1.35 million by the Florida Legislature.[22]

The other was for Eric Brody, who suffered catastrophic injuries after being struck by a police cruiser in 1999. He was compensated $10.75 million for ongoing medical care.[23]

At the close of the 2012 Legislative Session, a News Service of Florida story noted that "Two lives may be changed for the better by the cash, a long-lasting effect of Haridopolos' persistence."[19]

Jim Greer controversy

In 2010, Haridopolos received criticism for the sudden resignation of then Republican Party of Florida Chairman Jim Greer. Haridopolos was later validated when Greer was found guilty and sentenced to eighteen months in prison for theft and money-laundering charges.[24]

Subsequent career

Haridopolos owns and operates MJH Consulting. He has been recognized as a leading lobbyist in Florida.[1] He is also active in the Republican Governors Association.

Family

Haridopolos is married to Dr. Stephanie Haridopolos; they have three children, Alexis, Hayden and Reagan Brooke.

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References
  1. "Mike Haridopolos could earn nearly $500K for Q2 lobbying fees - Florida Politics". floridapolitics.com. Retrieved 2017-10-25.
  2. Haridopolos, Michael J. (1998). 10 big issues facing our generation. Orlando, FL: Harcourt Brace Custom Publishers. ISBN 9780155677784.
  3. Cotterell, Bill. Florida Today. Running mate derby starts. September 11, 2006
  4. Cotterell, Bill (2010-11-17). "Local News | FLORIDA TODAY". floridatoday.com. Retrieved 2014-05-21.
  5. Vows to work deliberately but will use supermajority (2010-11-06). "Mike Haridopolos Lauds More Conservative Senate". Sunshine State News. Retrieved 2012-07-06.
  6. "Haridopolos literally adopts open-door policy in Tallahassee | floridatoday.com | FLORIDA TODAY". Web.archive.org. Archived from the original on 2010-11-16. Retrieved 2014-03-25.
  7. "Mike Haridopolos - Representing Florida Senate District 26". Senatormike.com. Retrieved 2012-07-06.
  8. Catanese, David (2010-12-01). "For Haridopolos, Senate bid more 'when' than 'if'". Politico. Retrieved 2012-07-06.
  9. "Mike Haridopolos for U.S. Senate 2012". Mike2012.com. Retrieved 2012-07-06.
  10. "Florida Republican Sen. George LeMieux mulling a 2012 bid against Sen. Bill Nelson". The Washington Post.
  11. "Republicans Line Up to Take Down Bill Nelson". Sunshine State News. 2010-11-08. Retrieved 2012-07-06.
  12. "Haridopolos drops out of U.S. Senate race – Central Florida Political Pulse – Orlando Sentinel". Blogs.orlandosentinel.com. Archived from the original on 2012-10-24. Retrieved 2012-07-06.
  13. "Haridopolos drops out of Senate race | July 18, 2011 | Gary Fineout | HT Politics". politics.heraldtribune.com. Retrieved 2017-10-25.
  14. "Huckabee Endorses Florida's Haridopolos in Bid vs. Nelson". Newsmax. Retrieved 2017-10-25.
  15. Miller, Joshua (2011-06-27). "Haridopolos Snags Connie Mack Endorsement in Fla. Senate Race". Roll Call. Retrieved 2017-10-25.
  16. Man, Anthony. "Jeff Atwater bypasses Adam Hasner, endorses Mike Haridopolos for U.S. Senate". Sun-Sentinel.com. Retrieved 2017-10-25.
  17. "Adam Putnam endorses Haridopolos". POLITICO. Retrieved 2017-10-25.
  18. Deslatte, Aaron (2011-07-30). "Mike Haridopolos: Senate President Mike Haridopolos is relaxed in front of critics - Orlando Sentinel". Articles.orlandosentinel.com. Retrieved 2012-07-06.
  19. "Conventional Wisdom Right, Even in Unconventional Session". Wctv.tv. 2012-03-12. Archived from the original on 2012-11-17. Retrieved 2012-07-06.
  20. Maxwell, Scott (2010-04-03). "Will Florida lawmakers help imprisoned innocents? - Orlando Sentinel". Articles.orlandosentinel.com. Retrieved 2012-07-06.
  21. "Senate Staff Analysis and Economic Impact Statement" (PDF). Archive.flsenate.gov. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
  22. Chief, Aaron Deslatte, Tallahassee Bureau. "Scott apologizes, signs bill giving William Dillon $1.35M". OrlandoSentinel.com. Retrieved 2017-10-25.
  23. "Battle over Compensation for Eric Brody Finally Over". Sunshine State News | Florida Political News. 2012-03-08. Retrieved 2017-10-25.
  24. "Jim Greer sentenced to prison: Former Florida GOP chairman Jim Greer sentenced to 18 months in prison". tribunedigital-orlandosentinel. Retrieved 2017-10-25.
Florida House of Representatives
Preceded by
Howard Futch		 Member of the Florida House of Representatives
from the 30th district
2000–2003		 Succeeded by
Thad Altman
Florida Senate
Preceded by
Howard Futch		 Member of the Florida Senate
from the 26th district
2003–2012		 Succeeded by
Bill Galvano
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