Reubin Askew

Reubin Askew
A 1971 portrait of Askew
7th United States Trade Representative
In office October 1, 1979 – December 31, 1980
President	Jimmy Carter
Preceded by	Robert S. Strauss
Succeeded by	Bill Brock
Chair of the National Governors Association
In office January 23, 1977 – September 9, 1977
Preceded by	Cecil Andrus
Succeeded by	William Milliken
37th Governor of Florida
In office January 5, 1971 – January 2, 1979
Lieutenant	Thomas Burton Adams Jr. Jim Williams
Preceded by	Claude R. Kirk Jr.
Succeeded by	Bob Graham
Member of the Florida Senate from the 2nd district
In office November 6, 1962 – November 3, 1970
Preceded by	Philip D. Beall
Succeeded by	W. D. Childers
Member of the Florida House of Representatives from Escambia County
In office November 4, 1958 – November 6, 1962
Preceded by	J. B. Hopkins
Succeeded by	Gordon W. Wells
Personal details
Born	Reubin O'Donovan Askew (1928-09-11)September 11, 1928 Muskogee, Oklahoma, U.S.
Died	March 13, 2014(2014-03-13) (aged 85) Tallahassee, Florida, U.S.
Political party	Democratic
Spouse	Donna Lou Harper ​ (m. 1956)​
Children	2
Education	Florida State University (BA) University of Florida (LLB)
Signature
Military service
Allegiance	United States
Branch/service	United States Army
Years of service	1946–1948
Rank	Sergeant
Unit	Paratrooper

Reubin O'Donovan Askew (September 11, 1928 – March 13, 2014) was an American politician, who served as the 37th governor of Florida from 1971 to 1979. A member of the Democratic Party, he served as the 7th U.S. Trade representative from 1979 to 1980 under President Jimmy Carter. He led on tax reform, civil rights, and financial transparency for public officials, maintaining an outstanding reputation for personal integrity.^[1]

Born in Muskogee, Oklahoma, Askew served as a military intelligence officer in the United States Air Force during the Korean War. He established a legal practice in Pensacola, Florida, after graduating from the University of Florida Levin College of Law in 1955. Askew won election to the Florida House of Representatives in 1958 and to the Florida Senate in 1962. He defeated incumbent Republican governor Claude R. Kirk Jr. in the 1970 gubernatorial election and won re-election in 1974.

As governor, Askew presided over the imposition of the state's first corporate tax. He was one of the first of the "New South" governors and supported school desegregation. Askew is widely thought to have been one of the state's best governors; in 2014 the Tampa Bay Times ranked him the second best governor in Florida history and the Harvard Kennedy School at Harvard University rated him one of the country's top ten governors of the 20th century.^[2][3] Askew was the keynote speaker at the 1972 Democratic National Convention and declined an offer to serve as George McGovern's running mate in the 1972 presidential election.

Askew served as the United States Trade Representative from 1979 to 1981. He sought the Democratic nomination in the 1984 presidential election but withdrew early in the race. After leaving public office, Askew taught at the public universities of Florida.