Former member of Congress · last served 115th Congress

Bill Nelson

DEMOCRAT U.S. Senator · FloridaSenate 2001–2019 · House 1979–1991 (FL-9, FL-11)

Clarence Nelson was a Democratic U.S. senator from Florida, first elected to Congress in 1979, who voted with most Democrats on 94% of the 112th Congress’s yes/no votes and sponsored 5 bills that became law (113th–115th Congress).

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163Bills & resolutions sponsored113th–115th Congress (excludes amendments)

6Passed a chamberof 124 substantive bills (excludes resolutions and ceremonial bills)

5Became law3 substantive + 2 ceremonial · 113th–115th Congress

14Broke with partyof 250 yes/no votes, 112th (5.6%)

1Missed votesof 251 roll calls, 112th (0.4%)

—Pork: own shareFY2024 earmarks: not in office

How we count: “Broke with party” is a yes/no roll call where the member voted against most of their own party on that vote (party as recorded; even splits not counted). “Pork: own share” splits each earmark shared by several members evenly among them.

5 most recent votes

YeaOn Passage of the Bill — American Taxpayer Relief Act of 2012
Jan 1, 2013 · Bill Passed
YeaOn the Nomination — Nomination vote
Dec 30, 2012 · Nomination Confirmed
YeaOn the Nomination — Nomination vote
Dec 30, 2012 · Nomination Confirmed
YeaOn Passage of the Bill — Disaster Relief Appropriations Act, 2013
Dec 28, 2012 · Bill Passed
NayOn the Amendment — Disaster Relief Appropriations Act, 2013
Dec 28, 2012 · Amendment Rejected

5 most recent bills

S. 3456 A bill to redesignate Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge as the Nathaniel P. Reed Hobe Sound National Wildlife Refuge, and for other purposes.
Jan 10, 2019 · Became Public Law No: 115-432.
S. 3525 A bill to designate the facility of the United States Postal Service located at 7521 Paula Drive in Tampa, Florida, as the "Major Andreas O'Keeffe Post Office…
Sep 28, 2018 · Read twice and referred to the Committee on Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs.
S.Res. 660 A resolution expressing support for the designation of the week of September 23 through September 29, 2018, as Rail Safety Week in the United States, and…
Sep 28, 2018 · Referred to the Committee on Commerce, Science, and Transportation. (text of measure as introduced: CR S6389)
S. 3510 Agricultural Trade Improvement Act of 2018
Sep 26, 2018 · Read twice and referred to the Committee on Finance.
S.Res. 651 A resolution marking 1 year since the landfall of Hurricane Maria in Puerto Rico and the United States Virgin Islands.
Sep 25, 2018 · Submitted in the Senate, considered, and agreed to without amendment and with a preamble by Voice Vote. (consideration: CR S6311; text: CR S6309)

Top bills sponsored

Laws first, then bills that passed a chamber, were reported from committee, or drew the most cosponsors.

Elections Sen. Nelson has won

Sen. Nelson has won 6 U.S. House elections (1978–1988) and 3 U.S. Senate elections (2000, 2006, 2012). Of the contested races, margins ran from 4.9 to 45.4 points.

Democratic winRepublican winseat changed partyunopposed

Elections won9 in the data (1976–2024); losses are not listed

Closest win: 4.9 points2000, FL Senate

Won an open seat or took one from the other party2 of 9 elections (open seat or changed party)

Seat history, Florida’s 11th districtWinners, most recent three: Kathy Castor (D) 2006–2010 → Richard B. Nugent (R) 2012–2014 → Daniel Webster (R) 2016–2024. Elections shown, not terms; special elections not included.

Seat history, Florida Senate (class 1)Winners in regular elections, most recent three: Connie Mack (R) 1988–1994 → Bill Nelson (D) 2000–2012 → Rick Scott (R) 2018–2024.

Full election history for this seat →

Source: MIT Election Data and Science Lab, U.S. House V15 / U.S. Senate V8 (CC0), retrieved 2026-10-18; winners matched to member records by seat and term. Results run through the 2024 elections; nothing from 2026 is shown until it is certified. A margin is a fact about one election, never a score of how well a member represents anyone, and PORKER does not rank members by it.

How has Florida done while Sen. Nelson served?

2005 to 2018 in Florida: typical household income was up 1% after inflation, the share of people below the poverty line was up 0.8 points, and the share of workers looking for a job was down 1.1 points.

Typical household income · after inflation

Florida: $68.5K in 2005 → $69.5K in 2018

Florida up 1%U.S. up 4%

Share of people below the poverty line

Florida: 12.8% in 2005 → 13.6% in 2018

Florida up 0.8 pointsU.S. down 0.2 points

Share of workers looking for a job

Florida: 6.3% in 2005 → 5.2% in 2018

Florida down 1.1 pointsU.S. down 2.0 points

Each mini chart has its own scale, fitted to its lines (it does not start at zero), so compare the numbers, not the heights. Oxblood = state, grey = U.S.

While they served, not because of them. This shows what happened in Florida during Nelson’s time representing it (2001 to 2019). It does not say what the member did or caused. It is not a score, and PORKER never ranks members on it.

Survey years start at 2005. The yearly estimates for Florida begin in 2005, so 2001 to 2004 are not shown. No 2020 yearly estimate exists.

See the full 20-year record →Source: U.S. Census Bureau, American Community Survey 1-year estimates (tables B19013, B17001, B23001) and BLS CPI-U-RS for inflation, retrieved October 18, 2026. “About the same” means the change is inside the 90% margins of error. Who held the seat: Congress.gov member service records, year level.

Official records on bills this member sponsored

115th Congress. What Congress.gov lists for the 74 bills sponsored.

Record	Bills	Source
Bills sponsored	74	Source: Congress.gov member record, PORKER copy of October 26, 2026 ↗ See them →
With a CBO cost estimate listed	3	See the 3 →
With a committee report listed	3	See the 3 →

Evidence

How counted: Bills where this member is the lead (first-listed) sponsor in the 115th Congress, read from the stored Congress.gov bill records
Fields: cboCostEstimates, committeeReports, constitutionalAuthorityStatementText, notes
PORKER copy refreshed: October 26, 2026 (nightly)

Read this first. These are counts of records Congress.gov lists. Many bills never get a CBO estimate or a report, so a zero is not a mark against a member. We never show this as a score.

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Data as of Oct 26, 2026 · latest recorded Senate vote Sep 30, 2026 · Sources: Congress.gov, Senate.gov, House Clerk, Appropriations Committee earmark tables. PORKER is non-partisan.