Cory Mills

Cory Mills (born July 13, 1980)[1] is an American businessman, defense contractor, and politician serving as a member of the United States House of Representatives for Florida's 7th congressional district since 2023. A member of the Republican Party, he worked in various organizations as a security specialist and a business executive before being elected to Congress in 2022.

Cory Mills
Member of the U.S. House of Representatives
from Florida's 7th district
Assumed office
January 3, 2023
Preceded byStephanie Murphy
Personal details
Born (1980-07-13) July 13, 1980
Winter Haven, Florida, U.S.
Political partyRepublican
EducationFlorida State College at Jacksonville (AA)
American Military University (BS, MA)
WebsiteHouse website
Military service
Allegiance United States
Branch/service United States Army
Years of service1999–2004
Unit82nd Airborne Division
Battles/warsIraq War

Early life and education

Mills was born in Winter Haven, Florida. He earned an associate of arts degree in liberal arts and sciences from Florida State College at Jacksonville, followed by a Bachelor of Science degree in health sciences and a Master of Arts in international relations and conflict resolution from American Military University.[2]

Mills is Protestant.[3]

Career

From 1999 to 2004, Mills served in the United States Army, where he was a member of the 82nd Airborne Division and worked security as a member of the conventional Army to support the Joint Special Operations Command Task Force in the Iraq War but was not Special Forces qualified. Mills never received any Special Forces qualifications in the military, although he has subsequently made references that seem to imply he was a member of the Special Operations Community.[4] From 2005 to 2009, he was a security specialist for DynCorp. In 2010, he worked as a maritime security specialist and anti-piracy advisor for Special Tactical Services. Mills worked as a security manager for Chemonics from 2010 to 2011 and as a senior risk manager at Management Systems International in 2011. He joined Pax Mondial LLC in 2011 and later worked as the organization's director of the information operations division and senior vice president.[5]

In 2020 and 2021, Mills served as a member of the Defense Business Board. He is the co-founder of ALS Less-Lethal Systems, a company that manufactures equipment for military and law enforcement clients.[6] He also co-founded and is executive director of PACEM Defense, a private security company.[7]

U.S. House of Representatives

2022
Main article: 2022 United States House of Representatives elections in Florida § District 7

Mills announced his candidacy for the U.S. House of Representatives in Florida's 7th district in April 2021, challenging incumbent Democratic representative Stephanie Murphy.[8] Murphy's seat was a target for the National Republican Congressional Committee in the 2022 elections, but she announced her retirement in December 2021.[9] Mills faced a crowded primary, with his strongest opponent being State Representative Anthony Sabatini. Mills won the primary election in August 2022, earning over a third of the vote and beating Sabatini by over 10,000 votes.[10] Mills defeated Democratic nominee Karen Green in the November general election with 58.5% of the vote.[11]

Tenure

Mills handed out commemorative 40 mm grenades stamped with the Republican Party logo to fellow House members as a welcoming gift.[12]

Syria

In 2023, Mills was among 47 Republicans to vote in favor of H.Con.Res. 21, which directed President Joe Biden to remove U.S. troops from Syria within 180 days.[13][14]

2024 presidential election

Mills became the fourth representative from Florida to endorse Donald Trump for president in the 2024 presidential election, citing the need for Republican unity following Trump's indictment.[15]

Committee assignments

For the 118th Congress:[16]

Electoral history
2022 Florida's 7th congressional district Republican primary[17]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Cory Mills 27,452 38.06
Republican Anthony Sabatini 17,059 23.65
Republican Brady Duke 11,010 15.26
Republican Ted Edwards 4,197 5.82
Republican Russell Roberts 3,970 5.50
Republican Erika Benfield 3,912 5.42
Republican Scott Sturgill 3,055 4.24
Republican Al Santos 1,480 2.05
Total votes 72,135 100.00
2022 Florida's 7th congressional district election[18]
Party Candidate Votes %
Republican Cory Mills 177,966 58.53
Democratic Karen Green 126,079 41.47
Write-in Cardon Pompey 10 0.00
Total votes 304,045 100.00
Republican gain from Democratic

References
  1. "Florida New Members 2023". November 17, 2022. Retrieved November 18, 2022.
  2. Powers, Scott (April 12, 2021). "Veteran, defense consultant Cory Mills files to run in CD 7". Florida Politics – Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government. Retrieved August 23, 2022.
  3. Jeff Diamant (January 3, 2023). "Faith on the Hill. The religious composition of the 118th Congress" (PDF). PEW Research Center. Retrieved April 5, 2023.
  4. "Meet Mills | Cory Mills for Florida's 7th Congressional District". CORY MILLS for U.S. Congress | Florida's 7th Congressional District. Retrieved August 23, 2022.
  5. "PACEM Solutions International Announces Cory Mills As Executive Chairman And Rana Al Saadi As Executive Vice Chairman". www.prnewswire.com (Press release). Retrieved August 23, 2022.
  6. "GOP hopeful sold tear gas used on Black Lives Matter protesters". POLITICO. Retrieved August 24, 2022.
  7. Harper, Mark. "8 Republicans clamor for 7th Congressional District voters' attention in primary election". Daytona Beach News-Journal Online. Retrieved August 23, 2022.
  8. Mutnick, Ally (April 9, 2021). "Republicans draft veteran candidates to reclaim House majority". Politico. Retrieved April 9, 2021.
  9. Ferris, Sarah (December 20, 2021). "Murphy, a leader of House Dem centrists, won't seek reelection". Politico.
  10. "Alert: Cory Mills wins Republican nomination for U.S. House in Florida's 7th Congressional District". SFGATE. August 24, 2022. Retrieved August 24, 2022.
  11. Zizo, Christie (November 8, 2022). "Cory Mills defeats Karen Green for U.S. House District 7 seat". WKMG-TV. Orlando, Florida.
  12. "A Florida GOP congressman sent his colleagues inert grenades as a welcome gift to the House". Business Insider. January 26, 2023.
  13. "H.Con.Res. 21: Directing the President, pursuant to section 5(c) of … -- House Vote #136 -- Mar 8, 2023".
  14. "House Votes Down Bill Directing Removal of Troops From Syria". US News & World Report. March 8, 2023. Retrieved April 4, 2023.
  15. "Exclusive: Florida GOP Congressman Backs Trump for President". April 10, 2023.
  16. "Cory Mills". Clerk of the United States House of Representatives. Retrieved May 3, 2023.
  17. "Florida's 7th Congressional district election". Ballotpedia. Ballotpedia. Retrieved November 27, 2022.
  18. "Florida 2022 live election results". Reuters. Retrieved December 11, 2022.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.