About Newt

Wengay "Newt" Newton was born and raised in Midtown South, St. Petersburg, the most impoverished area in Pinellas County. He is one of eight siblings raised by his divorced single mother.

Early on in his childhood, Newt learned the values of hard work and perseverance. His mother worked as a domestic worker; sewing, cooking, cleaning and rearing children of affluent families in Snell Isle and Shore Acres. Her strong work ethic and persistence on the importance of education enabled her children to escape poverty and greatly improve their circumstances.

After graduating from Northeast High School in 1981, Newt attended ITT Tech (International Telephone and Telegraph Technical Institute) where he received an Associate Arts Degree in Electronics Engineering in 1983. Newt later continued his education attending Hillsborough Community College and St. Petersburg College.

In 1983 Newt began an 18 year career with the Xerox Corporation, where he advanced to the position of Senior Printing Systems Engineer.

It was at Xerox that he met and later married his soulmate Melissa. They have been married for 31 years. The Newtons have raised a strong family with four children and seven grandchildren.

Following his long career at the Xerox Corporation, Newt formalized his long standing passion for serving the community and entered politics. "After serving 8 years on the St. Petersburg City Council and 4 years in the Florida Legislature, I return to Tallahassee with the Relationships and Bridges that I have built to continue bringing home much needed resources for District 62.