Mary Pérez Johnson Former City of Orlando councilwoman and Orange County commissioner Mary Johnson died June 3rd at age 86. Johnson created the Victim Service Center of Central Florida and was the first Hispanic person elected to the city and county commissions.
Gwen Margolis Former Senate President Gwen Margolis died June 9th at the age of 85. Margolis, a Democrat from Miami-Dade, was first elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 1974. She served as chair of the House Finance and Taxation Committee and was elected to the Florida Senate in 1980. She became the first female Senate president in 1990.
Thomas Terrell Sessums Thomas Terrell Sessums, former Speaker of the Florida House of Representatives, died June 6th. Sessums, a Democrat from Tampa, served as a state legislator from 1963 to 1974 and as Speaker from 1972-74. He is credited for legislation creating the State Fair Authority, the Tampa Hillsborough Expressway Authority, the Hillsborough County Environmental Protection Commission and the Tampa Sports Authority. Sessums was 89.