Bob Graham

Graham was born in Coral Gables, Florida, to Hilda Elizabeth (née Simmons), a schoolteacher, and Ernest R. Graham, a Florida state senator, mining engineer, and dairy/cattleman. He was the youngest of four children. His older half-brother, Phil Graham, was publisher and co-owner of The Washington Post. He married Adele Khoury, of Miami Shores, in 1959. One of their daughters, Gwen Graham, was a U.S. Representative from Florida from 2015 to 2017. In 2021, Gwen Graham was confirmed as Assistant Secretary of the United States Department of Education. Bob Graham attended Miami Senior High School from 1952 to 1955; he was student body president his senior year. He was International Trustee of the Key Club, the Kiwanis service organization. While at Miami High, Graham was the recipient of the Sigma Chi Award, the school's highest honor. He received a bachelor's degree in 1959 in political science from the University of Florida, where he was a member of the Epsilon Zeta chapter of Sigma Nu fraternity and was inducted into Phi Beta Kappa, the University of Florida Hall of Fame, and Florida Blue Key. He earned a Bachelor of Laws from Harvard Law School in 1962. ==Political career==

Graham was elected to the Florida Senate in 1970, from Dade County. Redistricted into a seat encompassing portions of northern Dade and southern Broward County, Graham was reelected to District 33 in 1972 and 1976. In 1974, Graham was on the Education Committee when it traveled to local Florida jurisdictions. After a public meeting in Miami, a frustrated English teacher, M. Sue Riley, said to Graham, "The main problem with the Education Committee is no one has any experience in education." Taken aback, Graham responded, "Well, what can I do about that?" Riley then arranged for Graham to teach a semester of civics at Miami Carol City Senior High School. Three years later, Graham used his "workday" idea to kick-start his gubernatorial campaign. Throughout 1977 and into 1978, Graham conducted 100 workdays, including bellhop, tomato picker, and road construction paver. To stay legitimate, he worked an entire day, kept the press at a distance, and performed all aspects of the job. Graham performed more than 400 workdays during his political career. Governor of Florida Graham was elected to the governorship of Florida in 1978 after a seven-way Democratic primary race in which he initially placed second to Robert L. Shevin. His supporters at the time dubbed themselves "Graham crackers." In his first month as governor, Graham established a 22-member Florida Tax Commission, headed by Lieutenant Governor Wayne Mixson, to recommend policy to "make taxes more fair". In January 1979, he appointed Florida state senators Buddy MacKay and Kenneth M. Myers; Florida state representatives Gwen Margolis and Carl Ogden; businessman Preston A. Wells Jr. and others to the commission. Graham emphasized education and focused on improving the state's public universities. In addition, Graham's administration focused on economic diversification and environmental policies. During his tenure as governor, the state added 1.2 million jobs, and for the first time in state history, Floridians' per capita income exceeded the U.S. average. File:Florida Governor-elect Graham being sworn in by Chief Justice Arthur England.jpg|Graham sworn in as governor, January 1979 File:Bob Graham delivers last address as governor.jpg|Graham delivering his last public address as governor before assuming his Senate seat U.S. Senator Graham was elected to the U.S. Senate in 1986, defeating incumbent Senator Paula Hawkins, 55% to 45%. He was reelected in 1992 (over Bill Grant, 66% to 34%) and 1998 (over Charlie Crist, 63% to 37%) and chose not to seek reelection in 2004. Upon retiring from the Senate in January 2005, Graham had served 38 consecutive years in public office. In 2004, Graham published ''Intelligence Matters: The CIA, the FBI, Saudi Arabia and the Failure of America's War on Terror''. The notebooks are now housed at the University of Florida library. Presidential and vice presidential politics Graham was considered as a Democratic nominee for Vice President of the United States in 1988, 1992, 2000, and 2004. He was a finalist on Bill Clinton's shortlist of running mates in 1992, and was also considered by Al Gore in 2000. 2004 presidential election In December 2002, Graham announced his candidacy for President of the United States in the 2004 election. However, he withdrew from the race in October 2003, several months after heart surgery, and retired from the Senate the following year. ==After politics==

(right) at the dedication ceremony for Pugh Hall, home of the Graham Center for Public Service at the University of Florida Graham spent the 2005–2006 academic year at Harvard University, where he was a fellow at the Institute of Politics. He and his wife lived among undergraduates in Mather House for the year. As a fellow, Graham taught a weekly study group about effective citizenship. During his time at Harvard, Graham began work on a book about effective citizenship, which would later become ''America, the Owner's Manual''. Later, he would credit his undergraduate assistants at Harvard, as well as professors Archon Fung, David King, and Robert D. Putnam, as having helped him understand and conceive of the ideas that would become the book. After his year at Harvard, Graham focused on founding a center to train future political leaders at the University of Florida, where he earned his bachelor's degree in political science in 1959. The Bob Graham Center for Public Service is housed within the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences at the University of Florida. It provides students with opportunities to train for future leadership positions, and allows them to engage with policy makers and scholars in the university community. On February 9, 2008, The James and Alexis Pugh Hall, funded by longtime friends of the Graham family, was dedicated in the historic area of campus. Pugh Hall serves as the Center's home as well as the university's oral history and African and Asian languages programs. In 2009, Graham published ''America, The Owner's Manual: Making Government Work for You'', a book about inspiring and teaching citizens to effectively participate in democracy. In the years after his retirement from the Senate, Graham published almost 70 op-eds on state and national issues. He was also a member of the Inter-American Dialogue, a think tank based in Washington, D.C. In 2011, Graham published his first novel, the thriller The Keys to the Kingdom. He also wrote four nonfiction books, Workdays: Finding Florida on the Job, Intelligence Matters, World at Risk, and ''America: The Owner's Manual'', and an illustrated children's book, Rhoda the Alligator. Graham's health declined after a stroke in 2020. His body lay in state in Florida's Historic Capitol before being buried in a private family service. ==Honors==

On May 6, 2006, at the spring commencement for the College of Liberal Arts and Sciences, the University of Florida awarded Graham an honorary doctorate, the Doctor of Public Service. On November 18, 2005, the Florida Legislature renamed the Sunshine Skyway Bridge, which was rebuilt during Graham's time as governor, the Bob Graham Sunshine Skyway Bridge. ==References==