Tim Mahoney | |
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| Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Florida's 16th district | |
| In office January 3, 2007 – January 3, 2009 | |
| Preceded by | Mark Foley |
| Succeeded by | Tom Rooney |
| Personal details | |
| Born | Timothy Edward Mahoney August 16, 1956 Aurora, Illinois, U.S. |
| Political party | Republican (before 2005) Democratic (2005–present) |
| Spouse |
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| Residence(s) | Palm Beach Gardens, Florida, U.S. |
| Alma mater | |
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Timothy Edward Mahoney (born August 16, 1956) is an American politician and businessman who served as the U.S. representative for Florida's 16th congressional district from 2007 to 2009. A member of the Democratic Party, he was elected in November 2006 after his opponent, six-term Republican incumbent Mark Foley, resigned on September 29, 2006, after questions were raised about an email exchange with a congressional page.
Mahoney was born in Aurora, located in Kane County, Illinois, but was raised in Summit, New Jersey. He received a Bachelor of Arts degree in computer science and business from West Virginia University in 1978 and a Master of Business Administration from George Washington University in 1983. After graduating university, Mahoney became a computer executive working for Tecmar. In 1986, he moved to Florida, where he became president of Rodime. He co-founded Union Atlantic, LLC, in 1995, and in 1998, he bought vfinance.com, a website for entrepreneurs, and merged the two. Mahoney served as chairman and COO of vFinance, and also formed the Center for Innovative Entrepreneurship, a nonprofit organization centered around measuring the impact of "innovative entrepreneurship" on the economy.
In 2006, Mahoney ran for U.S. Congress to represent Florida's 16th congressional district as a Democrat, challenging the incumbent Representative, Republican Mark Foley, in what was initially rated as a safe seat for Foley. After Foley was forced to resign due to a scandal involving him sending sexual messages to a congressional page, the race became more competitive, and Mahoney narrowly beat the replacement nominee, state representative Joe Negron, in the November election, with 49.55% of the vote. Mahoney was sworn in on January 3, 2007, to the 110th Congress. While in Congress, Mahoney joined the moderate Blue Dog Coalition and New Democrat Coalition groups, and has been described as a moderate and conservative Democrat.
In October 2008, media outlets began reporting allegations that Mahoney paid hush money to a mistress to conceal an extramarital affair.[1][2] Mahoney's wife filed for divorce in October 2008, and Mahoney, running for re-election, lost the November 4 election to Republican nominee Tom Rooney by 20 points. Mahoney left office in January 2009, and continues to reside in Palm Beach Gardens.
- ^ "Congressman's $121,000 Payoff to Alleged Mistress". ABC News. October 14, 2008. Retrieved October 14, 2008.
- ^ "Rep. Tim Mahoney's wife files for divorce, seeks assets". Treasure Coast Palm Beach News. October 20, 2008. Archived from the original on October 21, 2008. Retrieved October 21, 2008.