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Andy Gardiner (born January 23, 1969) is a Republican politician who served as a member of the Florida Senate, representing the 9th District from 2008 to 2012, and the 13th District, which stretches from Orlando to Titusville, from 2012 to 2016. From 2014 to 2016, Gardiner served as the President of the Florida Senate. Prior to Gardiner's election to the Senate, he served in the Florida House of Representatives, representing the 40th District from 2000 to 2008.
When Gardiner ran for re-election in 2002, he was opposed only by Jack Conway, a Libertarian candidate who supported the privatization of public education. Gardiner was endorsed for re-election by the Sentinel, which criticized Conway's platform as "outlandish" and praised Gardiner for showing "lots of promise during his first two-year term," specifically noting his efforts to pass legislation and his leadership positions. He handily won re-election, winning 77% of the vote to Conway's 23%.
Gardiner was re-elected without opposition in 2004. He ended his campaign to be Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives for the 2006-2008 legislative term, conceding to fellow State Representative Marco Rubio. Instead, he was appointed Majority Leader for the 2004-2006 legislative term by Speaker-designate Allan Bense.
In 2006, Gardiner was opposed for re-election by Darren Soto, an attorney and the Democratic nominee. Soto opposed Gardiner's re-election with the intent of tying up funds in Gardiner's race, to prevent the Republican Party of Florida from attacking Scott Randolph's ultimately successful campaign in an adjacent district. The Sentinel once again endorsed Gardiner, citing his "ability to build consensus and get things done," though they praised Soto as "an articulate attorney who has a future in public office." Gardiner ended up defeating Soto handily, winning his fourth and final term in the House with 63% of the vote to Soto's 37%.
During the 2010-2012 legislative term, Gardiner served as Majority Leader of the Florida Senate. He pushed for legislation that would have waived the cost of drivers license for the poor, though it ultimately failed to pass, and called for the reform of the state's regional work-force training agencies. Gardiner stopped State Representative Mike Horner's effort to remove Orange County Mayor Teresa Jacobs from the Central Florida Expressway Authority after she pushed for ethics reform, which the Sentinel referred to as an example of the Senate stopping "House excesses."
Following the reconfiguration of the state's legislative districts in 2012, Gardiner opted to run for re-election in the 13th District, which contained almost none of the territory that he had previously represented in the Senate. Running for a second and final term, Gardiner was opposed by Christopher Pennington, an attorney and the Democratic nominee. Both candidates spoke on the need to improve economic development in northern Brevard County, which was hard-hit by the ending of the Space Shuttle program. Gardiner emphasized the need for experience in revitalizing the local economies, while Pennington called for "fresh ideas" and an emphasis on "energy opportunities," including small nuclear power facilities. Though the Sentinel praised Pennington as "well-intentioned," they endorsed Gardiner for a final term, noting that while he was "a staunch fiscal and social conservative, but not a shrill partisan like some other party leaders." Following his re-election, he worked with fellow State Senator Thad Altman to start dredging the Indian River Lagoon, which had been struck by massive algae blooms that killed wildlife and destroyed sea grass.
During the 2014-2016 legislative session, Gardiner serves as the President of the Florida Senate. However, in 2012, when Gardiner did not yet have the voters to be Senate President over fellow State Senator Jack Latvala, then-State Senator John E. Thrasher conspired to install himself as Senate President for the 2014–2016 term. Latvala joined with State Senators David H. Simmons and Rene Garcia to outmaneuver Thrasher, and elected Gardiner. In Gardiner's term as Senate President, he pushed for state funding to provide assistance to special needs students and for the proposed expansion by the University of Central Florida into downtown Orlando, which would have included "a statewide coordinating center for disabled students as well." Though both proposals were passed by the legislature, they were both ultimately vetoed by Governor Rick Scott, largely seen as pushback for Gardiner's unsuccessful efforts to expand Medicaid under the Affordable Care Act. Gardiner strongly condemned Governor Scott's veto of the funding for disabled students, saying, "There are many families across Florida who have seen their dreams shattered by his decisions today," and noting, "It is unfortunate that the messaging strategy needed to achieve the Governor's political agenda comes at the expense of the most vulnerable people in our state."
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