Meet Congressman Jimmy Patronis
Jimmy Patronis Jr., a Republican, serves as Congressman for Florida Congressional District 1, encompassing Escambia, Santa Rosa, Okaloosa and Walton counties in Florida’s Western Panhandle. As a Panhandle native, Jimmy Patronis is a Christian, supporter of President Trump, a staunch defender of 2nd Amendment rights, and a supporter of first responders, law enforcement and America’s veterans and active military servicemembers.
Patronis, the son of Jimmy Patronis Sr., is a fourth-generation Floridian, who was born, raised, and a lifelong resident, of Florida’s beautiful Panhandle. He’s married to the love of his life Katie, and together they have two boys Theo and Johnny who both love sports and politics. The fifth member of the family, Bruce, is the rescue dog that the whole family loves and who serves as the Congressman’s official walking-buddy.
As a young man, Jimmy Patronis – the youngest of four – worked in his family’s restaurant, bussing tables, taking out the trash, filling ketchup bottles and making customers feel welcomed. It’s in the restaurant where he developed a deep respect for hard work, as well as a love of people and politics. He later pursued a degree in political science from Florida State University, where he grew a passion for the Nole Nation. It’s during college where Patronis entered public service through internships with the Florida State Senate and the House of Commons in the United Kingdom.
Patronis’ first official entrance into public service was his appointment to Florida’s Elections Commission, and he later ran, and won, his first election to the Florida House of Representatives where he served for eight years representing Northwest Florida. After serving in the House of Representatives, Patronis joined Florida’s Public Service Commission, regulating the state’s utilities, and was also appointed to the Constitutional Revision Commission which meets every two decades to review and revise Florida’s Constitution.
In what was perhaps one of the most seismic events in Florida history, in 2017 then-Governor Rick Scott appointed Jimmy Patronis to serve as Florida’s Chief Financial Officer (CFO) – a constitutional, statewide elected position.
During Patronis’ term, Florida made incredible progress in cutting taxes, paying down debt, and supporting law enforcement with recruitment bonuses and pay raises. As CFO, Patronis managed the state’s finances, served as State Fire Marshal, and oversaw many other functions of state government. He also served on the Florida Cabinet, alongside the Governor, Attorney General, and Commissioner of Agriculture, directing issues related to the state’s retirement system, veteran’s issues, land acquisitions, and others.
Jimmy Patronis also spearheaded efforts to dismantle Leftwing politics from financial decisions by taking ESG head-on and divesting $2 billion from BlackRock, who at the time, was a major proponent of Woke investing. He also defended Israeli businesses from Boycott, Divestment, and Sanction activities, and invested hundreds of millions of Florida Treasury dollars into low-risk, quality yield, Israel bonds.
As a former small business owner, Jimmy Patronis also made growing and protecting Florida’s economy a major priority.
He helped reopen Florida, and get people back to work, from the Covid lockdowns by serving on the Reopen Florida Taskforce and fought for legal protections, so small businesses wouldn’t succumb to frivolous Covid-related lawsuits. As a result of Patronis’ efforts, tens of billions in capital flowed from Blue States to the Sunshine State with people escaping Leftwing Bio-Security states, instead opting for the Free State of Florida, bringing their pensions with them, thus helping to fund Florida schools, roads, and hospitals.
Patronis also protected Florida businesses from the IRS. When Biden proposed 87,000 new IRS agents, the CFO held meetings with businesses throughout Florida, highlighting abuses by agents and creating a Tax Advocate position within his agency to help Floridians fight back. To further fight Big Brother and promote financial liberty, Patronis backed innovations related to cryptocurrencies and blockchain technologies and opposed any efforts by the federal government at creating a Central Banking Digital Currency. He also put policyholders first by administering the My Safe Florida Home program which provided hundreds of millions of dollars to homeowners across the state for free inspections and $10,000 grants to upgrade homes to rein in insurance premiums.
As State Fire Marshal he made supporting Florida’s firefighting community a priority by securing $10 million in funding and equipment for Urban Search & Rescue Teams, as well as supporting firefighters battling PTSD and cancer, ensuring their treatment was covered. Patronis successfully advocated for PTSD legislation that expanded mental health benefits to first responders. He also acquired hundreds of thousands of dollars in grant funding for cancer decontamination supplies, so firehouses could clean equipment of cancer-causing carcinogens. Patronis also was the first State Fire Marshal in state history to deploy mental health teams to support first responders at the Surfside building collapse.
Patronis would go on to win two statewide elections, making him the longest serving Chief Financial Officer ever in Florida history. It was in the middle of his second term as CFO that Rep. Matt Gaetz resigned from Congress, allowing Jimmy Patronis the opportunity to serve the Panhandle in a higher capacity. In consultation with his wife Katie, and with President Trump’s endorsement, Patronis ran, and won, the FL CD-1 seat in a special election with a double-digit victory.
As Congressman, Patronis has made his priorities supporting President Trump’s America First Agenda through cutting taxes, reining in spending, investing in the military and reforming veteran’s services to support those who gave so much to our country. Jimmy Patronis serves on the Transportation & Infrastructure and Small Business committees in Congress.
For more information on the Congressman follow his X account, Instagram, and Facebook at @PatronisFL.