Earl Dewitt Hutto

Who is Earl Dewitt Hutto?

Earl Dewitt Hutto is an American politician. He is a former U.S. Representative from Florida.

Born in Midland City, Alabama, Hutto attended Dale County public schools, and received a Bachelor of Science from Troy State University in 1949. He did graduate work in broadcasting at Northwestern University in 1951 and served in the United States Navy from 1944 to 1946. He worked as sports director and president of radio stations from 1954 to 1974, and was owner of an advertising agency from 1973 to 1979.

Hutto was elected to the Florida House of Representatives in 1972 and was reelected in 1974 and 1976. He was elected as a Democrat to the 96th and to the seven succeeding Congresses, serving from January 3, 1979 to January 3, 1995; he was not a candidate in 1994 for reelection to the 104th Congress.

Hutto was one of the most conservative Democrats in Congress during his tenure in office and despite serving in a district which voted very heavily Republican in presidential elections, he either won reelection easily or ran unopposed during his time in office, although his re-election margins did become narrower by the 1990s. After Hutto announced his retirement in 1994, Republican Joe Scarborough was elected to serve the people of Florida's 1st congressional district.