Three Named To PAC's Florida Steering Committee

December 7 , 2006 - Governor Mitt Romney’s Commonwealth PAC today named three key individuals to its Florida Steering Committee. Florida’s current Lt Gov Toni Jennings, former Florida House Speaker Allan Bense, and former Florida GOP Chairman Al Cardenas all join the Commonwealth PAC team as advisors.

“I greatly appreciate these three Floridians joining my team,” Romney said. “During their years of service, they each have made an incredible impact for their state. I look forward to working with them to help strengthen the Republican party – especially in Florida.”

The three join Floridians Sally Bradshaw and Ann Woods Herberger, both former top political advisors to Governor Jeb Bush, who began advising the Commonwealth PAC earlier this year.

Toni Jennings, serves as Governor Jeb Bush’s Lieutenant Governor in Florida. She is the first woman to hold the office. A native of Orlando, Jennings began her professional career as a public school teacher and later successfully ran her family owned construction business, Jack Jennings and Sons. She later served two terms in the Florida State House, and was then elected to the Florida State Senate – a seat she held for 20 consecutive years. During that time, Jennings served as Florida’s only two term State Senate President. Since becoming Lt. Gov., Jennings has been a key figure in shaping the state's agenda for educational excellence and for affordable, accessible healthcare. She was also the co-chair of Governor Bush’s Task Force on Access to Affordable Health Insurance, and led a year-long review of the state’s aerospace industry which led to the creation of Space Florida. Jennings has chaired Task Forces on Property Casualty Insurance reform and Workforce Training and chaired the Universal Pre-kindergarten Education Advisory council.

Allan Bense served as Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives for the last two years. As Speaker, Bense was a close partner with Governor Jeb Bush. He is a strong fiscal conservative, and as Speaker an advocate for spending cuts and tax cuts. He was also a proponent of continued education reform, including school choice. Bense is a native of Panama City, where he is active in community and civic affairs. He embodies the classic American success story, working his way up from humble beginnings and becoming one of the most successful businessmen in the Florida Panhandle. Currently, he remains involved in commercial development and serves as a member of the Council of 100, Florida Chamber of Commerce Board, and the Florida State University Board of Trustees.

Al Cardenas is the former two-term Chairman of the Republican Party of Florida. While in this role, he was appointed by the Republican National Committee Chairman to serve on the Executive Committee, the highest policy-making board at the RNC. He was the first Hispanic to head a major state party and remains the only Hispanic Republican Party Chairman in Florida history. Prior to serving as Chairman, Cardenas was a three-term Vice-Chairman for the State Party. In 2004, he served as the Co-Chairman of the Bush-Cheney ’04 Florida campaign. He is a regular opinion editorial columnist for El Diario, the largest circulating Spanish-speaking newspaper in America. He has appeared frequently on many English and Spanish TV news programs. Cardenas has represented Florida at every Republican National Convention since 1976 and held positions for both Presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. In Florida, Governor Jeb Bush appointed him as a member of the Board of Trustees to Florida Agricultural and Mechanical University. He is also a national board member of the American Conservative Union. He currently is a partner in the law Tew Cardenas law firm which has offices in Miami, Tallahassee and Washington D.C.

Copied from Mitt Romney's Commonwealth PAC.

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