Jeremy Ring

Jeremy Ring
Member of the Florida Senate
from the 29th district
Assumed office
November 20, 2012
Preceded by Chris Smith
Member of the Florida Senate
from the 31st district
In office
November 21, 2006 – November 20, 2012
Preceded by Skip Campbell
Succeeded by Joe Negron
Personal details
Born (1970-08-10) August 10, 1970
New Haven, Connecticut, U.S.
Political party Democratic
Spouse(s) Sharon Ring
Alma mater Syracuse University
Religion Judaism

Jeremy Ring (born August 10, 1970) is a Democratic politician who currently serves as a member of the Florida Senate, representing the 29th District, which includes western Broward County, since 2012, previously representing the 31st District from 2006 to 2012.

History

Ring was born in New Haven, Connecticut, in 1970, and attended Syracuse University, graduating in 1992 and later opening the first East Coast office of Yahoo and working to build the company up.[1]

Florida Senate

In 2006, when incumbent Democratic State Senator Skip Campbell was unable to seek re-election due to term limits, Ring ran to succeed him in the 32nd District, which included Coral Springs, Pompano Beach, and Sunrise in northeastern Broward County. He faced Broward County Mayor Benjamin Graber and James W. Haddad in the Democratic primary, and invested nearly a million dollars of his own money to develop an effective field program.[2] Ultimately, Ring defeated Graber and Haddad handily, winning 55% of the vote to Graber's 38% and Haddad's 7%, and faced only write-in opposition in the general election, winning easily.

In 2010, Ring was opposed in the general election by Patrick Laffey, a condo association manager and the Republican nominee. The Sun-Sentinel endorsed Ring for re-election, praising his "willingness to work with rival Republicans to advance public policy" and his "firmer grasp of business development and the importance of properly funded and targeted university investments."[3] Ring ended up defeating Laffey in a landslide and received 63% of the vote.

Following the reconfiguration of the state's legislative districts in 2012, Ring was moved into the 29th District, which retained most of the territory that he had previously represented, while expanding westward into Weston. He won the Democratic primary uncontested, and faced college student Soren Swensen, the Republican nominee, in the general election. Ring campaigned on his bipartisan credentials and his willingness to work with Republicans, saying, "I try not to take a political vote. I try not to take a vote based on the next election. It may not align with a political party. I'm not the most ideological person in the Florida Legislature."[4] The Sun-Sentinel endorsed him for re-election, arguing, "He's one of the few state lawmakers that can talk authoritatively about venture capital strategies one minute and devise a bill to tweak a problematic law to help city pension plans stay solvent the next."[5] Ring easily defeated Swensen with 64% of the vote to win his final term in the State Senate..

While serving in the Senate, Ring voted against an election reform bill sponsored by Republicans that aimed to expand early voting times following long lines in 2012, noting that despite it having "some decent provisions," it did not go far enough in ensuring that enough early voting days were provided.[6]

While serving in the legislature, Ring requested approval to work for Sterling Partners, a private equity firm that aimed to win state contracts, as a consultant. He emphasized that there was "nothing unethical or illegal about it" and that he would "not...be a lobbyist on their behalf."[7] Ultimately, he received permission from the Florida Commission on Ethics to do so.[8]

In 2014, Ring applied for the presidency of Florida Atlantic University, but ultimately was not selected as a finalist for the position. Though he had previously indicated that he would not be a candidate for any position before his term was up, he considered running for Chief Financial Officer of Florida in 2014 when the incumbent Chief Financial Officer, Jeff Atwater, who had also applied for the FAU presidency, was selected as a finalist.[9] Ultimately, Atwater was not selected and Ring did not run for his position.

References

  1. ↑ http://www.edc-tech.org/clientuploads/JeremyRingbio1.pdf
  2. ↑ James, Sallie (September 6, 2006). "Ex-yahoo Executive Upsets Graber". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved December 16, 2014.
  3. ↑ "Re-elect Jeremy Ring to the Florida Senate District 32 Seat". Sun-Sentinel. October 17, 2010. Retrieved December 16, 2014.
  4. ↑ Fleshler, David (October 9, 2012). "Young newcomer faces Ring in western Broward Senate race". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved December 16, 2014.
  5. ↑ "State Senate Districts 29, 31 and 33: Re-elect Ring, Smith, Sobel". Sun-Sentinel. October 18, 2012. Retrieved December 16, 2014.
  6. ↑ March, William (May 4, 2013). "Legislature OKs election reform bill". Tampa Tribune. Retrieved May 24, 2013.
  7. ↑ Mayo, Michael (April 29, 2013). "Broward state senator steps into minefield with prospective job". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved May 24, 2013.
  8. ↑ Klas, Mary Ellen (April 26, 2013). "Ethics panel gives Ring approval to work with firm seeking education business". Miami Herald. Retrieved May 24, 2013.
  9. ↑ Man, Anthony (January 7, 2014). "Jeremy Ring might run for chief financial officer". Sun-Sentinel. Retrieved December 16, 2014.
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