Keith Perry (politician)

In 2010, when incumbent Republican State Representative Larry Cretul, the Speaker of the House, could not seek re-election due to term limits, Perry ran to succeed him in the 22nd District, which included southern Alachua County, eastern Levy County, and western Marion County. In the Republican primary, he defeated Remzey Samarrai and John Patrick Deakins, winning 44% of the vote. He encountered Democratic nominee Jon Paugh in the general election, and he won election to his first term convincingly, with 61% of the vote.

When Florida House districts were redrawn in 2012, Keith Perry ran for re-election in the 21st District, which constituted vastly different territory than the 22nd District, but included Gainesville, where he lives. He was unopposed in the Republican primary, and in the general election, he faced Andrew Morey, the Democratic nominee. Because Keith Perry had not represented most of the territory in the legislature and the fact that Morey had not run for office before, they "were unfamiliar faces in broad swaths of District 21."[2] In the end, Perry was re-elected with 57% of the vote.

While in the legislature, Keith Perry was the sponsor of legislation that would extend "foster care from age 18 to 21," so as to ensure that foster children who turn 18 but have not obtained their high school diploma are not left entirely on their own.[3]

In 2016, after court-ordered redistricting, Perry ran for newly drawn open Senate seat anchored by Alachua County. He defeated former state senator Rod Smith in the general election, 52.6 to 47.4%.[4] Perry stated that his goals for the term included reducing taxes, reducing government regulation, and increasing funding for the arts and music in elementary schools.[5]