Pete Mitchell, a longtime aide to Bill Nelson, will serve as campaign manager for Nelson's re-election effort.

"Mitchell, 60, assumes the job today after going on reduced status in the Senate as provided by Ethics Committee rules," the campaign said in a release. "Recently, Nelson named Marley Wilkes, a key member of his fundraising team, as deputy campaign manager.. Mitchell has been a fixture on the Florida political scene for three decades, the having been director of the state House budget committee and chief of staff for Nelson when Nelson was state Treasurer in the mid-1990s."