Rick Dantzler

When Dantzler returned to Winter Haven in 1981, rumour was that the local state representative, Democrat Bob Crawford, was considering a run for the Florida Senate, but because he would not publicly commit, it was stopping other Democrats from running for his House seat. Dantzler instead approached Crawford in the representative's office, and plainly asked the man about his intentions. When Crawford admitted his senatorial plans,[1] Dantzler ran for the 43rd District seat and beat Republican Bill Siegel in the 1982 election with 11364 votes (60.1% thereof).[9] For his 1984 run to retain his seat from the 43rd District, Dantzler ran unopposed in both the Democratic primary and the general election.[10] Dantzler was elected to the same seat four times,[7] serving from 1982 to 1990.[2]

Dantzler in 1990

In 1990, Dantzler was elected to the Florida Senate seat from District 13, defeating Republican Ernie Caldwell with 51.1% of the vote.[11] This vacancy was also Bob Crawford's doing, as the Democratic senator left his seat to run for Florida Commissioner of Agriculture.[1] While in the Senate, Dantzler forged "landmark laws", and his proudest achievement was negotiating the Everglades Forever Act as chairman of the Senate Natural Resources Committee. Fellow Senate Democrat Howard Forman told the Sun-Sentinel in 1998 that Dantzler was known for his success at bringing together senatorial combatants. Eighty-nine percent of Dantzler's senate votes were found to have aligned with the interests of the conservative Christian Coalition of America.[1] Dantzler served in the Senate until resigning from representing District 17 on January 6, 1998.[12]

In 1998, Dantzler began his campaign for the Florida governorship. Dick Pope Jr., his father-in-law, held Dantzler's official campaign announcement at Cypress Gardens,[5] the botanical garden and amusement park founded by Dick Pope Sr. in 1936.[13]

Dantzler was a gubernatorial candidate in the Democratic Party's 1998 primary.[14] When Dantzler resigned from the senate, he said it was to preempt campaign finance improprieties that could arise due to his influence in the March 3, 1998 legislative session. Fellow Democrat contender, Representative J. Keith Arnold, called this a smokescreen gesture that would allow Dantzler more time than his opponents to fundraise; while political historian Edmund Kallina said the move was probably equally calculated to grab headlines, it actually indicated Dantzler's fundraising weakness in the face of Florida Lieutenant Governor Buddy MacKay's superior capabilities.[12] By May 30, 1998, Dantzler's polling numbers for the September primary were trailing behind those of Lieutenant Governor MacKay, the latter of whom had raised approximately US$2.2 million (equivalent to about $4M in 2022).[14]

According to Florida Democratic Party insiders, it was late June when Dantzler—behind in polls and suffering fundraising difficulties—approached Lieutenant Governor MacKay about joining forces for the Democratic primary. Governor Lawton Chiles brokered the deal, and on June 30 in a downtown Tallahassee park, the two men announced a new joint ticket. Supporters of the new joint venture expected Dantzler would provide the aggressiveness, youth, and vitality that MacKay's campaign lacked in facing Jeb Bush. Meanwhile, Arnold said he would stay in the primary race, calling the MacKay–Dantzler ticket a political marriage that would not help either man's chances in the election.[15]

Despite the political endorsement of the Sun-Sentinel,[16] MacKay and Dantzler ultimately lost the November 3, 1998 election to Jeb Bush and Frank Brogan.[5]

Dantzler's FSA photo (c. 2014)

In 2013, then-president of the United States Barack Obama asked Dantzler to serve as the Florida State Executive Director of the Farm Service Agency (FSA).[3] When initially approached, Dantzler later admitted ignorance of the position, but became more interested the more he learned. The agency's responsibilities included the United States Department of Agriculture's programs concerned with Florida's environment, minority farmer outreach, and agriculture emergency response; these issues' importance to Florida are what Dantzler said compelled him to accept the appointment and take over the office from the outgoing Debby Folsom.[7]

The 57-year-old lawyer accepted the president's appointment in 2013,[3] and served from January 13, 2014[7] through President Obama's last three years in office.[3] As the executive director's office was located in Gainesville, Florida, Dantzler's family stayed in Polk County, Florida while the new appointee moved to McIntosh, Florida:[7] a town approximately 20 miles (32 km) from Gainesville. In his new position, Dantzler looked forward to working with the Florida Department of Agriculture and Consumer Services to combat citrus greening disease and to resolve labor issues.[7]

Soon after his appointment, Dantzler worked with US Congressional Representative Ted Yoho to soften or delay the effects the Agricultural Act of 2014 would have on Floridian peanut farmers who could not secure crop insurance due to the federal Farm Security and Rural Investment Act of 2002.[17]

After his run for the lieutenant-governorship, Dantzler made an aborted run for Florida Commissioner of Agriculture. The Ledger said in 2013 that he dropped from the race partly because of the pay-to-play requirements of urban county political parties.[5]

In 2013, Dantzler spoke with The Ledger saying of politics, "I think about it every day. I miss it a lot." Dissatisfied with the products of Tallahassee, Florida and Washington, D.C. politics, the former state senator had crafted an agenda in case he returned to politics. Dantzler invoked Lawton Chiles' 1990 gubernatorial campaign, where the former US senator won the election having fund-raised with "$10 and $100 donations. If I ever thought I could do that, man I'd be off and running."[5]