CQ Voting Studies are an annual analysis of a member's support or opposition to a given position. Interest Group Ratings are based on rankings from groups chosen to represent liberal, conservative, business and labor viewpoints.Voting Participation scores are based on the number of times a member voted "yea" or "nay" on roll call votes (not including quorum calls in the House). CQ Vote Studies Year Presidential Support Party Unity   S* O* S O 1998 18% 82% 91% 8% 1997 25 75 93 5 1996 33 67 93 6 1995 15 83 96 3 1994 35 64 98 1 1993 33 66 91 6 1992 79 19 92 4 1991 71 29 88 10 1990 71 29 89 10 S=Support; O=Oppose
Voting Participation Year % 1998 98 1997 99 1996 99 1995 99 1994 99 1993 98 1992 96 1991 99 1990 99	Interest Groups Year ADA AFL-CIO CCUS ACU 1998 5% n/a 83% 96 % 1997 10 13 70 100 1996 5 9 88 100 1995 0 0 96 96 1994 0 22 75 100 1993 15 17 73 96 1992 5 11 75 92 1991 25 33 70 90 1990 17 8 71 83
Note on Interest Groups: ADA=Americans for Democratic Action; AFL-CIO=American Federation of Labor-Congress of Industrial Organizations; CCUS=Chamber of Commerce of the United States; ACU=American Conservative Union

FLORIDA 6 : North Central - Lake and Marion counties; part of Jacksonville

A mostly rural district, the 6th covers North Central Florida from the Georgia line to Clermont, west of Orlando. Nearly half of the district's population lives around Ocala, a retirement center known for its horse farms, and Sumter County, where Interstate 75 and Florida's Turnpike meet. The remainder of the district is dotted with rolling hills, dozens of lakes and acres of forest, often passed over by tourists on their way to Tampa and Orlando.

Home to many blue-collar workers, the 6th went Republican at the national level in 1994 and has stayed that way despite a voting population split between the two parties. Much of the 6th had been prime territory for Southern Democrats, but conservatism has outweighed party allegiance since the early 1990s.

The district includes parts of nine counties from Jacksonville to near Gainesville, benefiting from both cities' employers. The southern part of the 6th saw rapid population growth during the 1980s and '90s, with many of the newcomers moving into the growing number of trailer parks. The prevalence of retirees and blue-collar jobs at prisons and factories held down economic growth during the 1990s. Cecil Field Naval Air Station, outside Jacksonville, was scheduled to close in 1999, removing about 1,000 civilian jobs at or near the base.

Major Industry
Health care, agriculture/forestry, defense

Military Bases
Cecil Field Naval Air Station, 4,500 military, 166 civilian (1997)

Population
562,219 (1990)

Cities
Jacksonville (pt.), 98,434; Lakeside (unincorporated), 29,137; Ocala (pt.), 28,473 (1990)

People
54% rural; 18% age 65+ (ranks 10 of 23 in state; top third nationally); 63% married couples, 25% married couples with children; 12% college educated (ranks 20 of 23 in state; bottom third nationally); 54% white collar (ranks 19 of 23 in state; middle third nationally); 28% blue collar (ranks third of 23 in state; middle third nationally) (1990)

Race
87% white, 11% black, 1% Asian; 3% Hispanic origin (1990)

Median Household Income
$25,036 (ranks 18 of 23 in state; bottom third nationally) (1990)

Unusual Features
Glass-bottomed boat invented for tourists viewing Silver Springs, an aquifer east of Ocala; Citrus Tower in Clermont, a 22-story structure that looks out over Lake County's orange groves.

© 2002 The Washington Post Company