Jennifer Sullivan (politician)
| Jennifer Sullivan | |
|---|---|
| File:Jennifer Sullivan.jpg | |
| Member of the Florida House of Representatives from the 31st district |
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| Assumed office November 18, 2014 |
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| Preceded by | Bryan Nelson |
| Personal details | |
| Born | August 1, 1991 Altamonte Springs, Florida |
| Political party | Republican |
| Alma mater | Liberty University |
| Profession | Youth development leader |
| Religion | Christian |
Jennifer Mae Sullivan (born August 1, 1991) is a Republican politician who currently serves as a member of the Florida House of Representatives, representing the 31st District, which includes the cities of Apopka, Eustis, Mount Dora, Tavares, and Umatilla in northern Lake County and northern Orange County, since 2014.
History
Sullivan was born in Altamonte Springs, Florida, and currently attends Liberty University, where she is taking online classes towards completing a degree. She has held a number of jobs, including working at a blueberry farm, as a waitress, and as a babysitter, and campaigned for Amendment 2, an ultimately successful constitutional amendment to ban gay marriage in Florida in 2008, and for her mother, Patricia Sullivan, who unsuccessfully ran for the Congress in the Republican primary in 2010 in the 8th congressional district.[1]
Florida House of Representatives
In 2014, incumbent State Representative Bryan Nelson was unable to seek re-election due to term limits, so Sullivan ran to succeed him. She faced Randy Glisson, Terri Seefeldt, Belita Grassel, and Joseph Stephens in the Republican primary, which was an open primary because no other candidates had filed. Sullivan campaigned on her conservative Christian credentials,[1] and attracted support from a number of young volunteers from other states who traveled down to Florida to work on her campaign.[2] The Orlando Sentinel ended up endorsing Grassel, blasting Sullivan in an editorial for being "steeped in tea-party dogmatism that has contributed to polarized governance."[3] Ultimately, in a close campaign, Sullivan emerged narrowly victorious, defeating Glisson by a little more than one thousand votes, winning 35% of the vote to Glisson's 29%, Seefeldt's 19%, Grassel's 14%, and Stephens's 3%, making her the youngest female member of the Florida House in its history.[1]
