As governor , Askew presided over the imposition of the state 's first corporate tax . He was one of the first of the " New South " governors and supported school desegregation . Askew is widely thought to have been one of the state 's best governors ; in 2014 the '' Tampa Bay Times '' ranked him the second best governor in Florida history and the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University rated him one of the country 's top ten governors of the 20th century . Askew was the keynote speaker at the 1972 Democratic National Convention and declined an offer to serve as George McGovern 's running mate in the 1972 presidential election
1972 Democratic National Convention
1972 Democratic National Convention
Reubin Askew