Paula Hawkins (politician)

Paula Hawkins (née Fickes; January 24, 1927 – December 4, 2009) was an American politician. She is the only woman elected to the U.S. Senate from Florida. She was the second woman ever elected to the Senate from the American South. She was the first woman in the country to be elected to a full Senate term without having a close family member who was in major public office. She was in the Senate from 1981 until 1987 as a Republican.
Hawkins died on December 4, 2009 at her home in Winter Park, Florida from problems caused by a fall, aged 82.