Burgess Cruises to Win in HD 38

Former Zephyrhills mayor and City Council member Danny Burgess has a new line to add to his political resume: state representative and successor to Rep. Will Weatherford.

Burgess, a Republican, easily won the race for state House District 38, covering east and central Pasco County, a seat held for the past eight years by Weatherford, the outgoing House speaker. Burgess, a Dade City lawyer and captain in the Army Reserve, collected 60 percent of the vote to overwhelm Democrat Beverly Ledbetter, a retired high school social studies teacher.

Burgess, 28, celebrated with a boisterous roomful of supporters cheering his victory speech at the Abbott Station restaurant in downtown Zephyrhills...read more