Reubin O'Donovan Askew (September 11, 1928 – March 13, 2014) was an American politician, who served as the 37th governor of Florida from 1971 to 1979.

He led on tax reform, civil rights, and financial transparency for public officials, maintaining an outstanding reputation for personal integrity.

[2] Born in Muskogee, Oklahoma, Askew served as a military intelligence officer in the United States Air Force during the Korean War.

He defeated incumbent Republican governor Claude R. Kirk Jr. in the 1970 gubernatorial election and won re-election in 1974.

[3][4] Askew was the keynote speaker at the 1972 Democratic National Convention and declined an offer to serve as George McGovern's running mate in the 1972 presidential election.

[9] In 1944, Askew was initiated as a member of Escambia Chapter Order of DeMolay, the Masonic organization for young men.

At Florida State, Askew was elected as student body president, beginning his long career in politics.

They had been disenfranchised since the turn of the century, when Florida had passed a new constitution with provisions for voter registration and elections that effectively blocked blacks from the polls.

In its endorsement of the Askew-Adams ticket, the Miami Herald reported that Askew had "captured the imagination of a state that plainly deserves new leadership."

During the campaign, the incumbent Republican governor, Claude R. Kirk Jr., ridiculed his opponent Askew as "a momma's boy who wouldn't have the courage to stand up under the fire of the legislators" and a "nice sweet-looking fellow chosen by liberals...to front for them.

The trail from Tallahassee to Palm Beach is littered with the bodies of former friends, supporters, and citizens -- all of whom made the fatal mistake of believing the words of Claude Kirk.

He is one of seven Florida governors to have been elected for two terms (the others were LeRoy Collins, Bob Graham, Lawton Chiles, Jeb Bush, Rick Scott, and Ron DeSantis).

Askew supported school desegregation and the controversial idea of busing to achieve racial balance (mandatory integration).

He expressed a progressive model in his appointments, naming the first black Justice of the State Supreme Court, Joseph Woodrow Hatchett.

In 1978, Askew appointed Jesse J. McCrary Jr. as secretary of state; he was the first black person to hold a cabinet-level office in Florida in the modern era.

Based on issues related to the cases of two life-sentenced inmates, Wilbert Lee and Freddie Pitts, Askew ordered a new investigation, which found they had been wrongfully convicted of murder in 1963.

Askew participated in part of the inquiry and in 1975 pardoned both inmates, who had been removed from death row after the Supreme Court's decision halting capital punishment.

[citation needed] Limited to two terms as governor by the Florida Constitution, Askew looked for his next opportunity.

[23] Askew joined a Miami law firm and at the same time began to organize a bid for the 1984 Democratic presidential nomination.

The first serious presidential candidate from Florida[citation needed], Askew never gained traction within the national Democratic Party.

Askew was against abortion, believing life began at birth, and favored a constitutional amendment to overturn Roe v. Wade.

[28] Three days after dropping out, he resigned from his law firm, reportedly due to discontent from partners who had raised large amounts of money for Askew.

From 1999 until his death, Askew gave a graduate seminar at the school, on topics of state and local government as well as international trade.

[6] In 1994, the Reubin O'D Askew Institute on Politics and Society at the University of Florida was established to provide a center for bringing together people to work on state issues.

[30][31] Askew died at a hospital in Tallahassee, Florida, on March 13, 2014, aged 85, from complications of pneumonia and a stroke.