Jesse Scheckner
Gov. Ron DeSantis just appointed frequent GOP donor Clarence “Steven” Munz and Central Florida GOP bigwig Samantha Scott to the Lake-Sumter State College District Board of Trustees.
Munz, a U.S. Army veteran, is the owner and operator of several businesses, including electrical contracting company Galaxy Home Solutions and 5M Livestock Co., a Sumterville equine facility specializing in “roping, ranch and all-around horses.”
Munz is also the founder of The Villages Pop Warner Football League and several other Florida-based companies, including the now-inactive World Cage Wars and Revelation Clothing Company. He received the Mid-Market Governor’s Business Expansion Award, presented by ex-Gov. Rick Scott, in 2012.
DeSantis appointed Munz to the Board of Trustees on Monday, Munz’s 57th birthday.
Federal and Florida campaign finance records show Munz has been a frequent giver to GOP candidates. At the state level, he gave $3,000 to Scott in 2014, $2,000 to DeSantis in 2022 and $1,000 to Wildwood Republican state Rep. John Temple the same year.
At the federal level, Munz gave $2,000 to a political committee supporting the 2004 re-election campaign of then-President George W. Bush; $5,000 in 2008 to the Republican National Committee; $5,000 to former U.S. Sen. Mitt Romney’s 2008 presidential campaign; $5,400 to Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s 2016 Senate campaign; $15,900 combined to Scott’s Senate campaigns in 2018 and 2023; and $25,000 last year to Right for America, a Palm Beach-based super PAC supporting President Donald Trump.
Scott is a Realtor for Connie Mahan Real Estate Group in Bushnell, Director of Marketing for Mike Scott Plumbing, and Secretary of the Sumter County Youth Center Board of Directors.
She’s also a member of several local organizations, including the Realtor Association of Lake and Sumter Counties, Sumter County Farm Bureau and Sumter County Fair Association.
She previously worked as Executive Director for the Sumter County Chamber of Commerce. In 2023, she was appointed to the Make America Florida Committee by then-Florida GOP Chair Christian Ziegler.
A third-generation Sumter resident, Scott is a graduate of Leadership Sumter and received “Top 40 Under 40” from Lake Sumter Style Magazine.
That was at least a few years ago; Scott — who also serves as Chair of the Republican Party of Sumter County and Vice President of the Sumter County Republican Club — is celebrating her 44th birthday Wednesday.
Scott has been a modest political giver of personal checks at the state level. Since 2021, she’s given $60 to the Realtors Political Advocacy Committee, $125 to the Republican Party of Florida, $500 to Orange GOP Chair Erin Huntley’s ongoing House District 45 campaign and $1,000 to Marco Island Republican state Rep. Yvette Benarroch.
At the federal level between 2023 and today, she gave about $5,927 to the Republican Party of Florida and $204 to a joint fundraising committee supporting Trump last year.
The Lake-Sumter State College District Board of Trustees is the governing body responsible for guiding the college’s strategic direction and ensuring legal and fiscal compliance. Members set policy and rules, hire and evaluate the college President, and oversee financial and facilities planning.
Prior to Munz and Scott’s appointments, the board had eight members, including Chair Bret Jones and Vice Chair Jennifer Hooten.
The new appointments are subject to Senate confirmation.
