Peter Rudy Wallace, American state senator. Bar: Florida, United States District Court (middle district) Florida 1981. Board directors Big Brothers-Big Sisters, Pinellas County, since 1981, Leadership St. Pete Alumni Association, since 1982; Member of St. Petersburg Bar Association, Florida Bar Association, Suncoast Tiger Bay Club, Kiwanis.
Background
Peter Rudy Wallace was born on April 13, 1954 to Martha Rudy and John Powell Wallace. His father was also a Democrat and an executive in the egg and poultry industry who founded the Wallace Hatchery and Wallace Chicks and was the first Chairman of the American Egg Board. His mother was a Republican who served on the Pinellas County School Board from 1972 to 1980.
Education
Wallace graduated from Harvard College with an Bachelor of Arts in 1976 and with a Juris Doctor in 1979.
Career
He has four brothers, two younger and two older. After graduating, he clerked for Judge Paul Hitch Roney on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit from 1979 to 1980. He was first elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 1982.
He ran in the 56th district to succeed the retiring Republican Betty Easley.
He faced Republican George F. Hieber, II, the incumbent from the 58th district, and defeated him by 53% to 47%. He comfortably defeated Richard B. Badgley in 1984 by 58% to 42% and was then re-elected unopposed in 1986, 1988 and 1990.
In 1992, he moved to the 52nd district and easily defeated R.J. Lonergan, Junior. by 63% to 37%. He was re-elected unopposed in 1994 and was also elected to serve as Speaker of the House that year, a race he had lost in 1989.
He was the last in an unbroken line of Democrats to serve as Speaker that stretched back to 1885.
As of 2014, he is the most recent Democrat to serve as Speaker: the House has been controlled by the Republicans ever since. Wallace did not run for re-election in 1996. In 1998, he ran for Florida Commissioner of Education.
He finished second in the Democratic primary with 180,855 votes (3346%).
Former Republican Palm Beach County Commissioner Ron Howard came first with 213,366 votes (3948%) and State Representative J. Keith Arnold came third with 146,271 votes (2706%). In the runoff, Wallace defeated Howard by 119,842 votes (5625%) to 93,216 votes (4375%).
In the general election, Wallace lost to former Treasurer, Insurance Commissioner and Fire Marshal Tom Gallagher by 2,185,027 votes (5654%) to 1,679,893 votes (4347%). Wallace subsequently retired from politics and resumed the practice of law.
He has resisted overtures to return to politics.
In 2009, he turned down the opportunity to run for the 16th district of the Florida Senate. In 2013, he declined to run for Florida"s 13th congressional district after the Republican incumbent Bill Young announced his retirement.
Achievements
Membership
Board directors Big Brothers-Big Sisters, Pinellas County, since 1981, Leadership St. Pete Alumni Association, since 1982. Member of St. Petersburg Bar Association, Florida Bar Association, Suncoast Tiger Bay Club, Kiwanis.
Connections
Married Helen Pruitt, March 3, 1984. 1 child, Daniel McSwain.