Suzanne Gunzburger

Education and early community activism

Gunzburger received her Bachelor's degree in Education from Wayne State University and her Master's of Social Work degree from Barry University.

Originally a public school teacher, Gunzburger became a social worker and family therapist in the 1970s. She was also a long-time community and political activist who was appointed by President Jimmy Carter as a delegate to the White House Conference on Families in 1980.

Political career

In 1982, Gunzburger was elected to the Hollywood, Florida, City Commission. Gunzburger was reelected in 1986 and 1990. She served on the Hollywood City Commission for ten years.

In 1992, Gunzburger resigned from the Hollywood City Commission in order to run in a special election for Broward County Commissioner. While initially viewed as an underdog, she finished first by a comfortable margin over her three opponents in the Democratic primary, and won the Democratic primary run-off by defeating Broward County School Board Member Don Samuels. Gunzburger went on the defeat municipal official Kurt Volcker (R) by a wide margin in the 1992 general election.

Gunzburger was reelected in a landslide margin in 1994 over veteran J.D. Fredericks (R); and was subsequently reelected without opposition in 1998, 2002 and 2006. In 2010, Gunzburger faced a tough primary challenge from former Florida Senate Democratic Leader Steve Geller. After a hotly contested, costly, and largely negative race, Gunzburger defeated Geller by a 56.5% to 43.5% vote. She went on to win the 2010 general election by an 84-16 margin. Gunzburger is term-limited in 2014, and announced she plans to retire from elective office.

When Gunzburger retired in November 2014, she tied the late Gerald F. Thompson's record for being the longest serving County Commissioner in Broward County history. Both Thompson (served 1974-1996) and Gunzburger (served 1992-2014) served 22 years apiece on the County Commission. With Broward County's adoption of 12-year term limits, no future Broward County Commissioner will be able to tie or break this record. During her years of service on the County Commission, Gunzburger also served at various times as Commission Vice Chair (1993–94 and 1998–99), Commission Chair (1994–95 and 1999-2000), Broward County Vice Mayor (2009–10), and Broward County Mayor (2010-11).

Gunzburger was also a founding member of the governing body of the Broward County Children's Services Council, a local taxing authority, serving from when the voters first created the entity in 2000 until her retirement in 2014.

2000 presidential recount

Gunzburger is perhaps best known from her role in the 2000 Florida election recount. She served as one of the three members on the Broward County Canvass Board. She received several death threats, and thousands of emails (both supportive and hostile) during the recount. Gunzburger was also named as a Defendant in one of the lawsuits filed by the George W. Bush campaign in their attempt to halt the recount. For her efforts in the 2000 recount, the Broward County Democratic Party gave Gunzburger their "Democrat of the Year" award in 2001.

Family

Gunzburger was married for 49 years to Gerard J. Gunzburger until his death in 2009. Gerry Gunzburger was a Holocaust survivor, chemist, and plastics manufacturing executive.

Gunzburger has three children:
Ronald M. "Ron" Gunzburger - Senior Advisor to Maryland Governor Larry Hogan, General Counsel to Broward County (Fla.) Sheriff Scott Israel, and founder/publisher of the Politics1.com website.
Cynthia "Cindy" Katz, a former national department store chain fashion buyer, who now is a full-time mother of three in New York.
Judith "Judy" Gunzburger, who works in South Florida as an educator in the correctional system.