For other people named Bill Nelson, see Bill Nelson (disambiguation).
Bill Nelson
Official portrait, 2021
14th Administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration
Incumbent
Assumed office May 3, 2021
President
Joe Biden
Deputy
Pamela Melroy
Preceded by
Jim Bridenstine
United States Senator from Florida
In office January 3, 2001 – January 3, 2019
Preceded by
Connie Mack III
Succeeded by
Rick Scott
Committee chairmanships
Ranking Member of the Senate Commerce Committee
In office January 3, 2015 – January 3, 2019
Preceded by
John Thune
Succeeded by
Maria Cantwell
Chair of the Senate Aging Committee
In office January 3, 2013 – January 3, 2015
Preceded by
Herb Kohl
Succeeded by
Susan Collins
22nd Treasurer of Florida
In office January 3, 1995 – January 3, 2001
Governor
Lawton Chiles Buddy MacKay Jeb Bush
Preceded by
Tom Gallagher
Succeeded by
Tom Gallagher
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives from Florida
In office January 3, 1979 – January 3, 1991
Preceded by
Louis Frey Jr.
Succeeded by
Jim Bacchus
Constituency
9th district (1979–1983) 11th district (1983–1991)
Member of the Florida House of Representatives from the 47th district
In office November 7, 1972 – November 7, 1978
Preceded by
Redistricted
Succeeded by
Tim Deratany
Personal details
Born
Clarence William Nelson II
(1942-09-29) September 29, 1942 (age 81) Miami, Florida, U.S.
Political party
Democratic
Spouse
Grace Cavert
(m. 1972)
Children
2
Education
University of Florida
Yale University (BA)
University of Virginia (JD)
Military service
Branch/service
United States Army
Years of service
1965–1968, 1970–1971 (reserve) 1968–1970 (active)
Rank
Captain
Space career
NASA payload specialist
Time in space
6d 2h 3m
Missions
STS-61-C
Mission insignia
Bill Nelson's voice
Nelson, as a U.S. senator, opens a Senate Commerce Subcommittee on Space and Science hearing on human space exploration Recorded April 23, 2013
Clarence William Nelson II (born September 29, 1942) is an American politician and attorney serving as the administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Nelson previously served as a United States senator from Florida from 2001 to 2019. A member of the Democratic Party, he previously served in the Florida House of Representatives from 1972 to 1978 and in the United States House of Representatives from 1979 to 1991. In January 1986, Nelson became the second sitting member of U.S. Congress to fly in space, after Senator Jake Garn, when he served as a payload specialist on mission STS-61-C aboard the Space Shuttle Columbia. Before entering politics he served in the U.S. Army Reserve during the Vietnam War.[1]
Nelson retired from Congress in 1990 to run for governor of Florida, but was unsuccessful. He was later elected Treasurer, Insurance Commissioner and Fire Marshal of Florida, serving from 1995 to 2001. In 2000, Nelson was elected to the U.S. Senate seat that had been vacated by retiring Republican senator Connie Mack III with 51% of the vote. He was reelected in 2006 with 60% of the vote[2] and in 2012 with 55% of the vote. Nelson ran in 2018 for a fourth term, but was narrowly defeated in the general election by then-Governor Rick Scott.[3] In May 2019, Nelson was appointed to serve on NASA's advisory council.[4]
In the U.S. Senate, Nelson was generally considered a centrist and a moderate Democrat.[5][6][7][8] Nelson supported same-sex marriage,[9] lowering taxes on lower and middle income families,[10] expanding environmental programs and regulation,[11] protecting the Affordable Care Act,[12] and expanding Medicaid.[13] Nelson chaired the Senate Aging Committee from 2013 to 2015, and served as ranking member of the Senate Commerce Committee from 2015 to 2019.
On March 19, 2021, President Joe Biden announced his intention to nominate Nelson to the position of NASA administrator.[14] Nelson was confirmed by unanimous consent by the Senate on April 29, 2021, and was sworn in by vice president Kamala Harris on May 3, 2021.
^"Florida Marriage Collection, 1822–1875 and 1927–2001". Ancestry.com.
^"Sen. Bill Nelson (D)" Archived May 11, 2013, at the Wayback Machine, National Journal Almanac, December 31, 2008. Retrieved February 9, 2012.
^Cite error: The named reference Reuters18 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^"Former U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson named to NASA advisory committee". May 28, 2019. Retrieved June 2, 2019.
^"Bill Nelson pitches long-held moderate message in tight U.S. Senate race". Tampabay.com. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
^Sullivan, Erin. "U.S. Rep. Connie Mack takes on longtime Sen. Bill Nelson | News". Orlando Weekly. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
^"Sen. Bill Nelson fights off GOP efforts to tag him a liberal | Tampa Bay Times". Archived from the original on April 23, 2016. Retrieved April 9, 2016.
^"U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson: Nelson works hard to be seen as moderate - tribunedigital-orlandosentinel". Orlando Sentinel. October 25, 2012. Archived from the original on April 24, 2016. Retrieved January 5, 2018.
^Cite error: The named reference :5 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference :6 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference :7 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference :8 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference :9 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^"President Biden Announces his Intent to Nominate Bill Nelson for the National Aeronautics and Space Administration". The White House. March 19, 2021. Retrieved March 19, 2021.
Omaima Aree Nelson (born c. 1968) is an Egyptian former model and nanny who was convicted of murdering her husband, BillNelson. She is serving a life...
Florida was held November 7, 2006. Incumbent Democratic U.S. Senator BillNelson won re-election to a second term. During the Terri Schiavo case in March...
thereafter serves at the president’s pleasure. Former senator and astronaut BillNelson has served as the administrator since May 3, 2021. The administrator...
Representatives and other state and local elections. Incumbent Democratic Senator BillNelson ran for re-election to a fourth term, but was narrowly defeated by Republican...
Willie Hugh Nelson (born April 29, 1933) is an American country singer, guitarist and songwriter. He was one of the main figures of the outlaw country...
being replaced by Rusty Egan. After The Skids, he played drums for BillNelson (of Be-Bop Deluxe), in the song "Decline And Fall", for the Quit Dreaming...
Clarence Nelson may refer to: BillNelson (Clarence William Nelson II, born 1942), American politician Clarence H. Nelson (1901–1968), Los Angeles physician...
Scott won the 2018 US Senate election, defeating Democratic incumbent BillNelson. The initial election results were so close that they triggered a mandatory...
Invisible Girls, which featured Martin Hannett, Steve Hopkins, Pete Shelley, BillNelson, and Paul Burgess. Clarke was born in Salford, Lancashire, in 1949. He...
Senator BillNelson won reelection to a third term, defeating Republican U.S. Representative Connie Mack IV (whose father, Connie Mack III was Nelson's direct...
Vietnam War. In 1969, Nelson was one of four senators to introduce a bill to establish the Wisconsin Islands Wilderness. In 1970, Nelson called for Congressional...
(December 6, 1908 – November 27, 1934), also known as George Nelson and Baby Face Nelson, was an American bank robber who became a criminal partner of...
A Republican, he ran for the U.S. Senate in 2012, losing to Democrat BillNelson. He is the son of former Republican U.S. Senator Connie Mack III and...
Mack III decided to retire instead of seeking a third term. Democrat BillNelson won the open seat, even as Republican presidential nominee George W....
Nelson Rolihlahla Mandela (/mænˈdɛlə/ man-DEH-lə; Xhosa: [xolíɬaɬa mandɛ̂ːla]; born Rolihlahla Mandela; 18 July 1918 – 5 December 2013) was a South African...
could be used against Senator BillNelson, a Democrat from Florida, because he had refused to co-sponsor the bill. Nelson easily won re-election in 2006...
the body. It is manufactured and marketed by self-styled "Professor BillNelson," also known as Desiré Dubounet. She is currently operating in Hungary...
senior senator in January 2019, following the defeat of former Senator BillNelson, and was reelected to a third term in 2022, defeating Democratic nominee...
Melroy to be NASA's deputy administrator, under former Democratic Senator BillNelson, who was nominated by the White House on March 19, 2021, to be the agency's...
sought the Republican nomination to challenge incumbent U.S. Senator BillNelson in 2012. The Washington Post has identified Haridopolos as "one of the...