page_title: Bill Nelson
section_title: Florida Legislature
hierarchical_section_title: Bill Nelson / Early political career / Florida Legislature
caption_attribution_description: English: Florida State House Representative Bill Nelson in 1972.
context_page_description: Clarence William "Bill" Nelson II is an American attorney and politician who served as a United States Senator from Florida from 2001 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served in the Florida House of Representatives from 1972 to 1978 and in the United States House of Representatives from 1979 to 1991. In January 1986, he became the second sitting member of Congress to fly in space when he served as a payload specialist on the Space Shuttle Columbia. Before entering politics he served in the U.S. Army Reserve during the Vietnam War.
  Nelson retired from Congress in 1990 to run for Governor of Florida, but was unsuccessful. He was later appointed Treasurer, Insurance Commissioner and Fire Marshal of Florida, serving from 1995 to 2001. In 2000, Nelson was elected to the U.S. Senate seat that had been vacated by retiring Republican Senator Connie Mack III with 51% of the vote. He was reelected in 2006 with 60% of the vote and in 2012 with 55% of the vote. Nelson ran for a fourth term in 2018, but was narrowly defeated in the general election by then-Governor Rick Scott. In May 2019, Nelson was appointed to serve on NASA's advisory council.
  In the U.S.
context_section_description: In 1972, Nelson was elected to the Florida House of Representatives as the member from the 47th district, representing much of Brevard County and portions of Orange County and Seminole County. He won reelection in 1974 and 1976.
caption: Nelson in 1972 as a Florida State Representative
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