
Made several stops in Daytona, including 1971 Firecracker 400 race
DAYTONA BEACH -- Reubin Askew, who served as the 37th governor of Florida from 1971 to 1979, died early this morning with family members by his side at Tallahassee Memorial Healthcare. He was 85.
His death was announced to the media by Ron Sachs, a former aide and family spokesman.
Askew's tenure as governor for eight years, beginning in 1971, was during a time in the U.S. of turmoil and change: There was the disgraceful resignation of President Nixon with Watergate to the fall of Saigon and the end of the Vietnam War and Askew's earlier successful push in 1972 for desegregation of Florida schools through busing, despite sporadic violence that ensued.