STATE HOUSE DIST. 92

By Amy Sherman, Miami Herald

In Broward's state House District 92, two gay candidates -- Wilton Manors City Commissioner and lawyer Gary Resnick and first-time candidate and accountant Mark LaFontaine -- have already filed paperwork to open campaign accounts for the 2008 election.

And Wilton Manors Mayor Scott Newton, who is straight, said he'll run too.

All three are Democrats.

They'll run to replace term-limited Democratic Rep. Jack Seiler. He says he won't be endorsing anyone.

''This field will probably be five or six candidates and of the five or six candidates, five or six would have supported me over the years,'' Seiler said. ``I can't get in the middle of it.''

The district includes at least a part of Fort Lauderdale, Deerfield Beach, Lazy Lake, Oakland Park, Pompano Beach and Wilton Manors.

Gay candidates are nothing new in Wilton Manors, where a city race once included gossip about whether a candidate was gay enough. But the Florida Legislature has never had an openly gay legislator.

LaFontaine drew national attention a few years ago when he applied for a leadership position with the Boy Scouts of America, which doesn't allow gay members or gay troop leaders.

State House may get first openly gay legislator

By Anthony Man
Sun-Sentinel Political Writer

The primary is 19 months away, but a Broward County seat in the Florida House of Representatives already has two candidates, and there's a good chance voters could elect the state's first openly gay state legislator.

Vying for the Democratic nomination so far are Gary Resnick, a member of the Wilton Manors City Commission, and Mark J. LaFontaine a Wilton Manors civic activist.

The seat will open when term limits force state Rep. Jack Seiler, D-Wilton Manors, to leave office. He was unopposed for re-election last year.

Seiler's House District 92 takes in parts of Deerfield Beach, Fort Lauderdale, Oakland Park, Pompano Beach and Wilton Manors. Wilton Manors and the Victoria Park neighborhood of Fort Lauderdale have many gay residents.

The district is overwhelmingly Democratic.

Resnick said Friday that he didn't think his sexual orientation would be a positive or a negative factor.

"I'm just running as a qualified elected official on my experience," he said. "My reason for doing this is to keep a strong state representative serving this district. I'm not looking to get any kind of notoriety and create milestones."

LaFontaine, too, said sexual orientation wouldn't be an issue. "I'm running as a candidate who just happens to be gay, and I'm here for the community as a whole," he said.

But, he said, it is "extremely important" for Florida to have an openly gay legislator. He said it would help a legislator to have a personal perspective on issues that affect the community.

The two candidates filed paperwork signaling their interest during the past two weeks.

LaFontaine, 40, is an accountant who has never run for office. The lifelong Broward resident has lived in Wilton Manors for a year.

He said he's gained legislative experience through attending city government meetings and other civic activities such as the Oakland Park Main Street program and the Fort Lauderdale Audit Advisory Board. He's president of the Gold Coast chapter of American Veterans for Equal Rights, a service organization that focuses on gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender vets.

Resnick, 47, is a lawyer who practices in Fort Lauderdale. He was first elected to the Wilton Manors commission in 1998 and re-elected three times. He has lived in the city for 12 years.

Resnick has Tallahassee experience. He has lobbied on behalf of his city and other Broward communities and currently serves on the League of Cities legislative committee.

He said he has done some legislative work in Tallahassee, including drafting and reviewing proposed laws, but said he has never lobbied on behalf of private clients.