Democrats find a candidate to run against Jim Norman this year

?Wes Johnson is exactly the kind of candidate voters have been hoping for,? says Hillsborough Democratic Party Chair, Chris Mitchell. ?He?s not a politician ? he?s a successful businessman, scientist, husband, and father who we can be proud to represent us in Tallahassee. District 17 is a high priority race for us this November. And we?re all in to win with Wes!?

According to the press release, Johnson received his undergraduate degree in nuclear engineering from the University of Florida and returned after 24 years in the electric utility industry to earn a PhD in bio-medical engineering. He also served as a research professor at the University of South Florida from 2003?2007 and adjunct professor from 2005?2010. He owned and operated WMJohnson, PhD, LLC from 2007-2012, a small business focused on bio-mechanical consulting and testing.

Former state representative Rob Wallace announced In February he will challenge Norman for the Republican nomination for Senate this August in the primary. Homeland security consultant John Korsak previously announced he would challenge Norman as well.

In the summer of 2010, ABC 28 was the first media outlet to report that Norman had failed to list a lakefront Arkansas home that his wife had bought in 2006 using a $500,000 "gift" from Ralph Hughes, a GOP Hillsborough County power broker who passed away in 2008. That issue has been an albatross around Norman's neck ever since, even though he has never suffered at the polls because of it (the Democrats failed to field a candidate against him in November of 2010).

In February he admitted his guilt after a state ethics panel found probable cause to show Norman should have disclosed the investment. The commission dismissed three other complaints that alleged that the gift created a conflict of interest.