Danny Burgess

Daniel Wright Burgess Jr. (born June 1, 1986) is an American politician who currently serves as a Florida State Senator from District 20, which includes parts of Tampa, Thonotosassa, New Tampa, and Zephyrhills. He previously served as the executive director of the Florida Department of Veterans' Affairs, as a member of the Florida House of Representatives, and as the mayor of Zephyrhills.

Danny Burgess
Member of the Florida Senate
from the 20th district
Assumed office
November 3, 2020
Preceded byTom Lee
Executive Director of the Florida Department of Veterans' Affairs
In office
January 24, 2019 – June 18, 2020
Preceded byGlenn Sutphin
Succeeded byVacant
Member of the Florida House of Representatives
from the 38th district
In office
November 4, 2014 – January 24, 2019
Preceded byWill Weatherford
Succeeded byRandy Maggard
Mayor of Zephyrhills
In office
April 9, 2013 – November 4, 2014
Preceded bySteve Van Gorden
Succeeded byGene Whitfield
Personal details
Born (1986-06-01) June 1, 1986
Zephyrhills, Florida
Political partyRepublican
SpouseCourtney Anne Burgess
ChildrenAdeline Belle Burgess, Daniel Wright Burgess III, Eleanor Rose Burgess
Alma materUniversity of South Florida (B.A.)
Dwayne O. Andreas School of Law (J.D.)
ProfessionAttorney

History

Burgess was born in Zephyrhills, Florida in 1986 and attended the University of South Florida. While a college student, he was elected to the Zephyrhills City Council in 2005, defeating Celia Graham with 60 percent of the vote.[1] Burgess was re-elected in 2007, defeating Richard Kaeberlein with 82 percent of the vote,[2] and he served as President of the City Council. In 2008, after he graduated with a degree in political science, he resigned from the City Council to attend the Dwayne O. Andreas School of Law in Orlando, graduating with his Juris Doctor in 2011. Upon graduation, he was commissioned in the Judge Advocate General's Corps of the U.S. Army Reserve as a first lieutenant and continues to serve in the rank of captain. He also began practicing with Johnson, Auvil, Pratico & Chane PA.[3] After the Mayor of Zephyrhills resigned after he faced impeachment proceedings over allegations of sexual harassment, Burgess ran in a special election to succeed him, and won, serving out the final year of the previous mayor's term.[4] He did not run for re-election in 2014.

Florida House of Representatives

In 2014, incumbent State Representative Will Weatherford was unable to seek re-election due to term limits, so Burgess ran to succeed him. He won the Republican primary unopposed, and advanced to the general election, where he faced retired social studies teacher Beverly Ledbetter. During the campaign, the Tampa Bay Times endorsed Ledbetter over him, criticizing Burgess for not having a "similar grasp of state issues" as Ledbetter and for having uninformed priorities.[5] However, Burgess won against Ledbetter with 60 percent of the vote.

Burgess was re-elected unopposed in 2016. Independent candidate David T. K. Hayes challenged him in 2018, but Burgess won re-election with 66 percent of the vote.

Department of Veterans' Affairs

On December 15, 2018, Governor-elect Ron DeSantis announced that he would appoint Burgess as executive director of the Florida Department of Veterans' Affairs.[6][7] Burgess's appointment was unanimously approved by the Cabinet on January 24, 2019.[8]

Florida Senate

After Senator Tom Lee announced in May 2020 that he would retire early from the Florida Senate, Burgess announced he would run in the special election to succeed him. Burgess was unopposed in the Republican primary and defeated Democratic nominee Kathy Lewis in the general election, 54.8 to 45.2 percent.[9][10]

In January 2021 Burgess introduced legislation to protect Confederate monuments; permit the state to overrule local governments' decisions to reduce funding for police; waive sovereign immunity for municipalities, thereby allowing local authorities to be sued for providing inadequate law enforcement; and block people injured while participating in protests from receiving damages. American Civil Liberties Union lawyer Kara Gross described the bill as an attempt "to silence and criminalize Black protesters and their allies who are exercising their First Amendment rights."[11]

References
  1. "City of Zephyrhills Municipal Elections Final Official Results April 12, 2005". Pasco County Supervisor of Elections. Retrieved November 30, 2014.
  2. "City of Zephyrhills Municipal Elections Final Official Results April 10, 2007". Pasco County Supervisor of Elections. Retrieved November 30, 2014.
  3. Derby, Kevin; Nielsen, Allison (December 4, 2013). "Rising GOP Star Danny Burgess Runs for Pasco County House Seat". Sunshine State News. Retrieved November 30, 2014.
  4. Morgan, Arjay (March 13, 2013). "Burgess wants to be mayor of Zephyrhills". Tampa Tribune. Retrieved November 30, 2014.
  5. "Times recommends: For a better Florida House". Tampa Tribune. October 10, 2014. Retrieved November 30, 2014.
  6. Staff Reports (15 December 2018). "Danny Burgess recommended to become head of Veterans' Affairs". Florida Politics. Peter Schorsch. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
  7. Associated Press. "Tampa Bay lawmaker picked to lead Florida veterans affairs". Tampa Bay Times. Tampa Bay Times. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
  8. "Danny Burgess approved as head of Veterans' Affairs". Florida Politics. 2019-01-24. Retrieved 2019-01-24.
  9. Mahoney, Emily L. (2020-11-03). "Danny Burgess secures Florida Senate District 20 seat". Tampa Bay Times.
  10. "Tom Lee endorses Danny Burgess as successor in Florida Senate". 10 June 2020.
  11. Brown, Alleen; Lacy, Akela (January 12, 2021). "In Wake of Capitol Riot, GOP Legislatures 'Rebrand' Old Anti-BLM Protest Laws". The Intercept. Retrieved February 10, 2021.
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