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Mike Hill (American politician)

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Mike Hill
Member of the Florida House of Representatives
from the 1st district
In office
November 6, 2018 – November 3, 2020
Preceded byClay Ingram
Succeeded byMichelle Salzman
Member of the Florida House of Representatives
from the 2nd district
In office
March 4, 2014 – November 8, 2016
Preceded byClay Ford
Succeeded byFrank White
Personal details
Born
Walter Bryan Hill

(1958-06-02) June 2, 1958 (age 66)
Scott Air Force Base, Illinois, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
SpouseGreta Hill
Children3
EducationUnited States Air Force Academy (BS)
University of West Florida (MBA)
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/service United States Air Force
Years of service1980–1990
AwardsAir Force Achievement Medal
Air Force Commendation Medal
Air Force Organizational Excellence Award

Walter Bryan "Mike" Hill (born June 2, 1958) is a Republican politician from Florida. He served in the Florida House of Representatives from 2014 to 2016 and 2018 to 2020, representing the Pensacola area.

Florida House of Representatives

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Following the death of Republican state representative Clay Ford, who had represented the 2nd District since 2007, on March 18, 2013, Hill ran in the special election and defeated Scott Miller, Ed Gray, Mark Taylor, Jack Nobles and David Radcliffe in the Republican primary with 42 percent of the vote. He was endorsed in his primary campaign by the Pensacola News Journal, which declared that his "military experience, passion for open government, and business experience" made him the best candidate.[1] In the general election, he faced Jeremy Lau, the Democratic nominee and a labor union official. Lau received the support of Ed Gray, whom Hill had defeated in the primary, and attacked Hill for not living in the district.[2] However, owing to the district's strong partisan lean, Hill defeated Lau comfortably, having won 58 percent of the vote, which enabled him to become the legislature's only African-American Republican member.[3]

In his campaign for re-election in 2014, Hill faced Lau once again. Hill campaigned for re-election with the full support of the Republican Party of Florida, which declared, "Mike Hill knows what his constituents want. They want someone who will fight for increased spending in education, for reduced taxes, and regulations and that is what Mike Hill represents."[4] He ended up defeating Lau in a landslide once again, winning 65% of the vote to Lau's 35%.

Hill did not seek re-election to the House in 2016, instead facing Doug Broxson in the Republican primary for the District 1 seat in the Florida Senate. Hill was defeated, winning 43.5% of the vote to Broxson's 56.5%. During the election, Hill faced scrutiny over his residency qualifications to serve in the Florida House.[5] Hill was investigated by the Escambia County Property Appraiser's office for alleged homestead fraud.[6] Hill explained his residency by saying that his wife and children lived permanently at a house in Marcus Pointe, and he lived apart from them at a rented condominium on Pensacola Beach.[7]

In 2018, Hill successfully sought election to the Florida House once again, this time representing House District 1. Hill defeated Rebekah Bydlak and Lisa Doss in the Republican primary before defeating Democrat Vikki Garrett in the general election.[8][9] In the 2020 election, Hill was defeated in the Republican primary by Michelle Salzman.

In the 2022 election, Hill again sought election to the House.[10] He was defeated in the Republican primary by Salzman.[11]

Controversies

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After taking office in 2018, Hill faced controversy when at a public forum, he laughed in response to a question from an audience member who claimed that New Testament penalties for homosexuality included the death penalty. After saying, "the Old Testament says that too," Hill said "imagine how that would go over" if he introduced such legislation.[12]

Hill initially refused to apologize, claiming he was a victim of a "social media lynching."[13] He later issued an apology, citing how the "tone of his response was received,"[14] after public outcry, including from House Speaker Jose Oliva and Rules Committee Chairman Chris Sprowls.[15] Hill was also condemned publicly by openly gay fellow state representative Carlos Smith, who called for him to "apologize" or "resign."[16] Pensacola News Journal columnist Andy Marlette called Hill "unfit for office."[17] He was later removed from the House Public Integrity and Ethics Committee for his comments.[18]

In April 2020, Hill received "significant backlash"[19] for telling a woman who had recently lost her job due to coronavirus that she "shouldn't ask for government permission"[20] to go back to work when the woman asked Hill for assistance with applying for unemployment insurance.[21] Hill's response was called "callous" in local media.[22] Hill had previously been criticized for appearing to make light of the coronavirus crisis by dining in close quarters.[23]

Hill again made news in 2020 when his campaign manager, Barbara Mayall, was booked into the Escambia County jail and charged with driving under the influence of alcohol.[24]

In August 2020, Hill, who was running for re-election for District 1 of the Florida House, lost in the Republican primary to Michelle Salzman with 47.5% of the vote to Salzman's 52.5%.[25]

Hill has made many controversial statements on Twitter and in public. In 2019, it was reported by Newsweek that Hill told an audience that God told him to introduce an abortion bill with no exceptions.[26] Hill was quoted in the Pensacola News Journal telling listeners that "As plain as day, God spoke to me … He said that wasn't my bill, talking about the heartbeat detection bill that I filed. He said that wasn't my bill. I knew immediately what he was talking about. He said, you remove those exceptions and you file it again. And I said yes Lord, I will."[27]

In 2018, he referred to Islam as a "cancer"[28] and a "demonic Muslim horde."[29] Hill also falsely claimed on Twitter in 2018 to have earned the endorsement of President Trump, citing a reference to Michael Jordan.[30] Questions were raised whether this violated Florida campaign law, though formal charges were not filed.[31] In that same campaign, Hill falsely claimed to have brought Trump's star from the Hollywood Walk of Fame to Pensacola.[32]

When he failed in his attempt to pass legislation to rename the Pensacola Bay Bridge after General Chappie James, Hill publicly accused a colleague of being a "thief in the night."[33] The proposal was ultimately signed into law in 2020.[34]

References

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  1. ^ "RECOMMENDATION: Mike Hill in Dist. 2". Pensacola News Journal. May 3, 2013. Retrieved December 5, 2013.
  2. ^ Cooper, Louis (June 1, 2013). "Hill vs. Lau for Florida House District 2 seat". Pensacola News Journal. Retrieved December 5, 2013.
  3. ^ Giunta, Eric (June 11, 2013). "Mike Hill Wins Florida HD 2 Race, Becoming Legislature's Only Black Republican". Sunshine State News. Retrieved December 5, 2013.
  4. ^ Schorsch, Peter (June 21, 2014). "With qualifying over, Jeremy Lau eyes rematch versus Mike Hill in HD 2". SaintPetersblog. Retrieved December 14, 2014.
  5. ^ "CAMPAIGN MANAGER FOR MIKE HILL RESPONDS • Navarre Newspaper". Navarre Newspaper. August 20, 2016. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
  6. ^ Rosica, Jim (August 18, 2016). "Mike Hill denies homestead fraud, claims 'dirty tricks' at play". Florida Politics. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
  7. ^ "Representative Mike Hill under investigation for Homestead Exemption fraud". WEAR. August 17, 2016. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
  8. ^ Wilson, Drew (August 28, 2018). "Mike Hill wins House comeback bid by a narrow margin". Florida Politics. Retrieved May 31, 2019.
  9. ^ Newby, John (November 6, 2018). "Mike Hill wins Florida State House District 1 in midterm election". Pensacola News Journal. Retrieved May 31, 2019.
  10. ^ Little, Jim (June 14, 2022). "Former Florida Rep. Mike Hill files to run against Michelle Salzman in Republican primary". Pensacola News Journal. Retrieved January 21, 2023.
  11. ^ Misencik, Brittany (August 23, 2022). "Michelle Salzman once again beats Mike Hill in Florida House District 1 race". Pensacola News Journal. Retrieved January 21, 2023.
  12. ^ Powers, Scott (June 1, 2019). "GOP lawmaker Mike Hill slammed for joking about killing gays". Florida Politics. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  13. ^ Little, Jim (February 20, 2020). "Rep. Mike Hill won't apologize; says he's victim of 'social media lynching'". Pensacola News Journal. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  14. ^ Little, Jim (June 5, 2019). "Rep. Mike Hill apologizes for how 'tone of his response was received'". Pensacola News Journal. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
  15. ^ Little, Jim (February 20, 2020). "Rep. Mike Hill laughed at suggestion that gay Floridians be executed". Pensacola New Journal. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  16. ^ @CarlosGSmith (May 31, 2019). "I'm shocked & disgusted to discover a colleague who I've worked closely with would joke about punishing me by death for being gay. As a survivor of anti-gay hate violence, I know the consequences of homophobia are real. @MikeHillfl should apologize to LGBTQ Floridians or RESIGN" (Tweet). Retrieved May 19, 2020 – via Twitter.
  17. ^ Marlette, Andy (February 21, 2020). "Marlette: In musing about executing gay Floridians, Mike Hill proves himself unfit for office". Pensacola News Journal. Retrieved May 19, 2020.
  18. ^ Russo, Amy (September 2, 2020). "Representative Mike Hill removed from House Public Integrity and Ethics Committee". WEAR TV. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
  19. ^ Castor, Rebekah (April 19, 2020). "Rep. Hill: 'When Americans are tired of being afraid and instead want to work, they will'". WEAR TV. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
  20. ^ Staff Reports (April 19, 2020). "'Don't ask for government permission': Mike Hill mocks unemployed constituent". Florida Politics. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
  21. ^ "I emailed Mike Hill trying to get help with this unemployment nightmare. Look at this reply. I'm boiling angry right now". Facebook. April 17, 2020. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
  22. ^ Robinson, Kevin (April 20, 2020). "Rep. Mike Hill draws flack for response to Pensacola woman's COVID-19 unemployment woes". Pensacola News Journal. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
  23. ^ Henderson, Joe (March 22, 2020). "Winner and Loser of the week in Florida politics — Week of March 16". Florida Politics. Retrieved May 21, 2020.
  24. ^ Staff Reports (May 18, 2020). "Bad karma: Homophobic Mike Hill staffer booked for drunken driving". Florida Politics. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
  25. ^ "Mike Hill (Florida)".
  26. ^ Phifer, Donica (May 24, 2019). "Florida State Rep. Says God Has Told Him To Introduce Abortion Bill Which Allows No Exceptions". Newsweek. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
  27. ^ Little, Jim (May 23, 2019). "Rep. Mike Hill says he will propose Florida abortion ban modeled after Alabama's new law". Pensacola News Journal. Retrieved May 28, 2020.
  28. ^ Wilson, Drew (September 10, 2018). "Mike Hill's comeback bid needed every trick in the book". Florida Politics. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  29. ^ Iannelli, Jerry (June 9, 2019). "A Timeline of Florida Rep. Mike Hill's Most Insane Statements". Miami New Times. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  30. ^ Wilson, Drew (September 10, 2018). "Mike Hill's comeback bid needed every trick in the book". Florida Politics. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  31. ^ Wilson, Drew (September 10, 2018). "Mike Hill's comeback bid needed every trick in the book". Florida Politics. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  32. ^ Little, Jim (August 23, 2018). "Florida House candidate Mike Hill wants Trump Hollywood star moved to Pensacola". Pensacola News Journal. Retrieved May 26, 2020.
  33. ^ "Mike Hill upset – Rick's Blog". February 20, 2020. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
  34. ^ Little, Jim. "Group fundraising for monument after Gen. Daniel 'Chappie' James Jr. Bridge gets official OK". Pensacola News Journal. Retrieved December 30, 2022.
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