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TAMPA, Fla. (WFLA) — Florida’s 42nd Governor Kenneth Hood “Buddy” MacKay, Jr. has died, Governor Ron DeSantis confirmed on Thursday. He was 91.
“A U.S. Air Force veteran and lifelong public servant, MacKay was dedicated to our country and our state,” DeSantis wrote in a social media post. “May he rest in peace.”
MacKay served in the U.S. Air Force in the 1950s before attending the University of Florida and earning his law degree, according to the Florida Department of State.
He spent many of the years following as a state representative, and during his time in Congress, worked to help bring the national budget under control.
In 1990, MacKay became the state’s 14th Lieutenant Governor, serving two terms alongside Lawton Chiles.
MacKay assumed the governorship after Chiles died suddenly of an apparent heart attack just three weeks before he was set to leave office.
According to the Florida Department of State, MacKay filled the role from Dec. 12, 1998, to Jan. 5, 1999.
He was married and had four sons.
