Scott Maddox
Office 1Member of the Tallahassee City Commission for Seat 1
Term start 1November 19, 2012
Term end 1December 12, 2018[1]
Predecessor 1Mark Mustian
Successor 1Elaine W. Bryant
Office 2Chair of the Florida Democratic Party
Term start 2January 4, 2003
Term end 2September 13, 2005
Predecessor 2Bob Poe[2]
Successor 2Karen Thurman
Office 3122nd and 124th Mayor of Tallahassee
Term start 3February 28, 1997
Term end 3February 28, 2003
Predecessor 3Ron Weaver
Successor 3John Marks
Term start 4March 2, 1995
Term end 4March 1, 1996
Predecessor 4Penny Herman
Successor 4Ron Weaver
Office 5Member of the Tallahassee City Commission
Term start 5February 1993
Term end 5March 1995
Birth nameScott Charles Maddox
Birth dateMarch 13, 1968 (age 58)
EducationFlorida State University (BS, JD)
PartyDemocratic

Scott Charles Maddox (born March 13, 1968) is an American politician. He was the mayor of Tallahassee, Florida, from 1995 to 1996 and from 1997 to 2005.[3] Maddox is the former chair of the Florida Democratic Party and a former Tallahassee City Commissioner, serving from 1993 to 1995, 1996 to 1997 and from 2012 to 2018.

Maddox was indicted on December 12, 2018, on 44 charges, including racketeering, bribery, extortion, bank fraud and wire fraud, in an FBI investigation into corruption that played a key role in Democrat Andrew Gillum’s campaign for Florida governor.[4] Maddox was suspended from the Tallahassee City Commission following the indictment and subsequently replaced after the appointment of Commissioner Elaine W. Bryant, Ph.D. on December 31, 2018.[5] In September 2021, Maddox was sentenced to five years in prison.[6][7] He was released on May 9, 2023.

Early life and education

Scott Maddox was born in Hialeah, Florida, and raised in the rural area of Homestead, Florida, and later, in Tallahassee, Florida. He graduated from Leon High School and attended Florida State University, where he earned a B.S. in political science and public administration. He went on to earn a J.D. from Florida State University College of Law. Maddox was a member of the Kappa Alpha Order men's fraternity.

Political career

In 1990, at the age of 22, Maddox ran for the Florida House of Representative's 10th district, but lost the Democratic primary by 32%. In 1993, while still in law school, Maddox became the youngest city commissioner in the city of Tallahassee's history, being elected at the age of 24, and a year later selected to become mayor pro-tempore. In 1995, the city commission chose Maddox as the city's mayor, where he worked towards improving race relations and overseeing a large expansion of city parks, greenways, and trails.[citation needed] After the residents of Tallahassee passed a referendum calling for popular elections for the office of mayor, Maddox became Tallahassee's first popularly elected city mayor in 1996.[8] In 1999, he served as president of the Florida League of Cities. Described as a "rising star" by Vice President Al Gore, Maddox spoke at the 2000 Democratic National Convention. Maddox attempted a run for Attorney General of Florida in 2002, but lost to future Orlando mayor Buddy Dyer in the Democratic primary. In 2003, Maddox was elected chairman of the Florida Democratic Party and also served as a member of the Democratic National Committee. Though Maddox announced a run for Governor of Florida in 2006,[9] he ultimately dropped out of the race. In 2010, he served as the Democratic nominee for Florida's Commissioner of Agriculture and Consumer Services, losing to Republican nominee Adam Putnam. Maddox was elected to the Tallahassee City Commission once again in 2012. In 2015, he announced a run for Superintendent of Leon County Schools. After failing to gain traction in the Democratic primary, Maddox dropped out during qualifying week. He was subsequently re-elected to the city commission in August 2016.

References

  1. ^ "Gov. Scott suspends Scott Maddox". 12 December 2018. Archived 2018-12-13 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2018-12-14.
  2. ^ "Tallahassee mayor selected to chair Democratic Party". News-Press. 2003-01-05. p. 58. Archived 2022-03-02 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2022-03-02.
  3. ^ "State: Florida Democrats see mayor as savior". St. Petersburg Times. 2002-12-30. Archived 2016-03-03 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2017-10-17.
  4. ^ Skoneki, Gray & Rohrer, Mark (10 December 2018). "Tallahassee's Scott Maddox indicted in case that rocked Andrew Gillum's Florida race for governor". Orlando Sentinel. Archived 2021-07-15 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2022-03-02.
  5. ^ "Tallahassee City Commission fills Seat 1 vacancy left by Scott Maddox". 31 December 2018. Archived 1 January 2019 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 1 January 2019.
  6. ^ "Former Tallahassee City Commissioner and Business Partner Sentenced for Years-Long Bribery Scheme". 9 September 2021. Archived 25 December 2021 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 25 December 2021.
  7. ^ "Day of reckoning: Scott Maddox sentenced to 5 years in prison in federal corruption case". Archived 2021-12-25 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2021-12-25.
  8. ^ Ian Urbina (2006-09-09). "Baby-Faced Mayor Takes Over an Aging Pittsburgh". The New York Times. Archived 2017-10-17 at the Wayback Machine. Retrieved 2017-10-17.
  9. ^ "Scott Maddox, no farmer, wants to be ag commissioner". Orlando Sentinel. 2009-07-07. Archived from the original on 2011-11-01. Retrieved 2011-03-26.