Florida Gov. Lawton Chiles dies at 68

December 12, 1998
Web posted at: 7:06 p.m. EST (0006 GMT)

TALLAHASSEE, Florida (AllPolitics, December 12) -- Florida Gov. Lawton Chiles, a folksy politician who served the Sunshine State for four decades, died Saturday afternoon of an apparent heart attack. He was 68.

Chiles, a Democrat who was in the last month of his second term as governor, died at about 4 p.m. at the Governor's Mansion in Tallahassee, where flags were lowered to half staff.

The governor's chief of staff, Linda Shelley, said he was found next to his cycling machine in the gymnasium of the mansion. Efforts to resuscitate him were unsuccessful.

Lt. Gov. Buddy McKay will now become Florida's chief executive until January 5, when Republican Gov.-elect Jeb Bush is scheduled to be sworn into office.

Chiles, a native of Lakeland, is survived by his wife, Rhea, and four adult children.

Chiles tagged 'Walkin' Lawton'

In his 40 years of political life, which began in 1958 with his election to the Florida House, Chiles had the distinction of never losing an election.

Before becoming governor, Chiles served three terms in the U.S. Senate, becoming known as "Walkin' Lawton" in his 1970 campaign for walking more than 1,000 miles across the state. He served as chairman of the Senate Budget Committee during the Reagan years.

Shortly after quadruple-bypass heart surgery in 1985, Chiles said he became frustrated with toiling in the Senate, where he complained it was too difficult to make things happen. He also was diagnosed with depression during this period and began taking a controversial antidepressant drug, Prozac.

He retired in 1989 but was convinced to make a comeback in the 1990 election, running a successful campaign against incumbent GOP Gov. Bob Martinez -- a race during which his use of Prozac became an issue.

In 1994, he narrowly won re-election over Bush, the son of former President George Bush. Behind with weeks left in the campaign, Chiles reached back to his roots and dubbed himself the "he-coon," a Southern reference to the oldest, wisest raccoon in the pack. It was designed to play off Bush's status as a political novice with a plastic image, and Chiles came from behind to win.

In July 1995, Chiles was hospitalized for a neurological problem diagnosed after he awoke suffering from nausea, slurred speech and a loss of coordination.

Moment of silence in Judiciary Committee

In Washington, news of Chiles' death prompted a moment of silence at a hearing of the House Judiciary Committee, which was meeting to consider impeachment charges against President Bill Clinton. Several Florida lawmakers, from both sides of the aisle, offered tributes.

"Governor Chiles was, I think, in most Floridians' eyes the epitome of a fine and decent man," said Rep. Robert Wexler. "He just embodied everything that was good about America."

"He's been a good man and a good governor for Florida," said Rep. Bill McCollum.

"He was a good man. He was a dedicated public servant," said Rep. Charles Canady, whose father was a longtime political associate of Chiles.

The Associated Press contributed to this report.