[1] Ritter decided to run for the Jacksonville City Council in early 1951, but was refused when he tried to file his intention with the clerk of the court, as he had been at school in Gainesville and not physically living in Duval County.
The publicity from the court challenge helped him win the election, and at 23, he became the youngest city councilman in Jacksonville's history.
Jacksonville had a history of racial segregation and violence, but Ritter was credited with keeping the fight over civil rights from tearing the city apart.
He was a progressive who supported the Civil Rights Movement and welcomed federal assistance for the city's urban renewal efforts.
Ritter was quoted in a 2002 interview for the Financial News and Daily Record: Nat Glover (Jacksonville Sheriff 1995-2003).
"[2]During the terms of Mayor Burns, the good ol' boy network was the de facto standard among those in government.
He worked for the Office of Economic Opportunity as Director Sargent Shriver's executive assistant during President Lyndon Johnson's administration.
Florida Funeral directors were his first client, but there have been many others, including golf professionals, the swimming pool industry and dry cleaners.
[2] The Federal Bureau of Investigation staged an undercover sting operation in 1981 using a convicted felon who was trying to obtain a state liquor license.
[1] Ritter suffered a heart attack in 2000 and received quadruple bypass surgery which slowed his pace, but only slightly.