| Maxine Baker | |
| Birth Name: | Maxine R. Eldridge |
| Birth Date: | July 26, 1898 |
| Birth Place: | Berwyn, Maryland, U.S. |
| Death Place: | Orange City, Florida, U.S. |
| Alma Mater: | Radcliffe College |
| Occupation: | Politician |
| Party: | Democratic Party |
| Spouse: | John A. Baker |
Maxine Baker (July 26, 1898 – January 28, 1994) was an American politician. She served as a Democratic member of the Florida House of Representatives from 1963 to 1972, representing Miami-Dade County, Florida. She is the namesake of the Baker Act, also known as the Florida Mental Health Act.[1]
Baker was on Florida Governor LeRoy Collins's Special Constitutional Advisory Committee (SPAC) in 1958 as a prominent Dade County representative of the League of Women Voters. Many in Florida wanted to finally revise the old Florida Constitution of 1885. She was a progressive force in advocating for county home rule, reapportionment, and particularly for desegregation of public schools. These changes eventually were incorporated into the 1968 revised Florida Constitution.[2]