Tag: 2022 Elections FL

Kamala Harris Campaigns with Val Demings

Grant Holcomb

Vice President Kamala Harris (D) campaigned with Congresswoman Val Demings (D-FL-13) in South Florida earlier this week in an attempt to bolster Demings’ chances of unseating Sen. Marco Rubio (R) in this November’s election.

Both Demings and Harris were one-time finalists for the vice president pick after then-candidate Joe Biden achieved the Democrat presidential nomination in 2020. The job eventually went to Harris, but Demings made a name for herself among Florida Democrats.

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Former Florida Secretary of State Releases First Political Ad

Grant Holcomb

Former Florida Secretary of State Laurel Lee released her first political ad of the campaign season. Lee is running for Florida’s 15th Congressional District which encompasses northeast Tampa communities and stretches up to Zephyrhills, and across to Lakeland.

In the ad, Lee touts her track record for implementing election integrity laws that were passed by the Florida Legislature and signed by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis. She also described herself as a “conservative that will battle Biden’s leftist agenda,” will continue to support building a wall on the southern border started by former President Donald J. Trump (R), and defend gun rights.

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DeSantis Sets Fundraising Record

Grant Holcomb

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) set a new 2022 gubernatorial campaign fundraising record. During April, DeSantis raised approximately $10.5 million. Around $2.3 million was raised by his reelection campaign and $8.2 million was raised by DeSantis’ political committee, Friends of Ron DeSantis.

In total, DeSantis has raised over $113 million for the election cycle, which is over 10 times the amount of his next closest competitor, Congressman Charlie Crist (D-FL-13).

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Charlie Crist Rakes In $1 Million for April, DeSantis Polls Well in North Carolina

Grant Holcomb

Florida’s two likely gubernatorial candidates have had successful months in preparation for the 2022 election. Congressman Charlie Crist (D-FL-13) pulled in another $1 million during the month of April and Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) finished second in a hypothetical GOP presidential poll in North Carolina.

Crist issued a press release and indicated the million-dollar month was from contributions from both his campaign and his Friends of Charlie Crist political committee. It is unclear how much money is coming from each entity. However, individual donors who give less than $50 consist of approximately 44,000 of the contributions and the large donations are funneled through the political committee.

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Gubernatorial Hopeful Crist Calls DeSantis Supporters ‘Toothless’

Grant Holcomb
Charlie Crist

In a video circulated across social media sites, Florida Congressman Charlie Crist (D-FL-13) referred to supporters of Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) as “toothless.” Crist is trying to outlast other Democrat candidates for the 2022 Florida gubernatorial nomination to eventually face off against DeSantis in the November general election.

In the video, Crist is speaking at an event and said DeSantis is trying to score “political points.”

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Gov. Ron DeSantis Re-Election Fundraising Tops $100 Million

Grant Holcomb

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) has raised more than $100 million, according to a campaign contributions report, and is the first candidate to reach the nine figure mark in the 2022 election cycle.

DeSantis has extended his lead over all of the likely opponents for the general election: Congressman Charlie Crist (D-FL-13), Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried (D), and Florida State Sen. Annette Taddeo (D-Miami).

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Florida Senators Rubio, Scott Vote ‘No’ on Brown-Jackson, Progressives Fawn

Grant Holcomb

Florida’s progressive officials fawned over the recent confirmation of Judge Ketanji Brown-Jackson to the United States Supreme Court delighting in the first black woman being confirmed to the high court. Florida’s Senators, Marco Rubio (R) and Rick Scott (R), both voted “no” in Brown-Jackson’s final confirmation vote.

Rubio, when assessing Brown-Jackson’s judicial history, viewed her more as a political activist than a judge working within the law.

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Sheriffs Endorse Wilton Simpson for Agriculture Commissioner

Grant Holcomb

A total of 59 county sheriffs have endorsed Florida Senate President Wilton Simpson (R-Trilby) for agriculture commissioner. Simpson, an egg farmer, has a number of notable endorsements so far in his young campaign.

Simpson’s list of endorsements includes: The Associated Industries of Florida (AIF), the National Rifle Association’s Unified Sportsmen of Florida (NRA-USF), the Associated Builders and Contractors of Florida (Florida Builders), Florida Police Benevolent Association (PBA), and Florida House Speaker Chris Sprowls (R-Palm Harbor).

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Senator Rick Scott Predicts 2022 Elections Will Change School Boards

Grant Holcomb

Florida Sen. Rick Scott (R) commented on the recent shift in attitudes from parents towards school boards with the 2022 elections less than one year away. Scott predicts overwhelming support for changes at the local level across Florida, and the country, as a result of months of pushback from parents to school districts imposing mask mandates and pushing Critical Race Theory (CRT).

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Latest Polls Show DeSantis, Rubio Outperforming Democratic Challengers

Grant Holcomb

In a newest poll from St. Pete Polls, Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is outperforming his likely Democratic challengers in a hypothetical head-to-head general election. According to the poll, DeSantis would defeat Congressman Charlie Crist (D-FL-13) 50.6-44.8 percent. DeSantis would also defeat Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried (D) 51.2-42.3 percent.

Surprisingly, in the matchup between DeSantis and Crist, DeSantis outperformed Crist among young voters by carrying 57.5 percent of likely voters aged 18-29. The youngest age bracket saw the most swing in favor for DeSantis.

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Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry Forecasts Political Future

Grant Holcomb

Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry is term limited in his current post, but he has already begun teasing his future political plans.

“I’m looking forward to the upcoming political season. 2022 & 2023 are coming at us fast,” Curry tweeted. “I’m as rested, rejuvenated & ready to roll as ever. & I’ve been in the middle of some tough campaigns. Elections matter. I am older, wiser, more experienced and have more energy & stamina now than any campaign I’ve been in or apart of. Got into this with purpose many years ago and will see it through.”

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Release of Census Numbers Starts Florida’s Redistricting Process

Grant Holcomb
Florida State Capitol

With Florida’s gubernatorial race only a few months in, the political rhetoric is increasing and pressure is mounting on Republican and Democratic sides of the aisle. For the Democrats, they will be attempting to unseat current Gov. Ron DeSantis and current Sen. Marco Rubio.

For Republicans, the pressure is mounting to increase their already dominant presence in Florida’s statewide offices and state legislature. However, this upcoming legislative session will also see the Republican-controlled State House and Senate redrawing Florida’s congressional seats.

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Democrats Search for Candidates to Challenge Miami Republicans

Grant Holcomb
Florida Senate Capitol

Just over 15 months from the 2022 midterms, Florida Democrats have yet to find candidates who could take back seats lost to Miami Republicans in 2020.

Former Congresswomen Donna Shalala and Debbie Mucarsel-Powell who represented Florida’s 26th and 27th congressional districts, lost their South Florida seats as a result of the big Republican turnout in Florida in 2020. Former President Donald J. Trump expanded on his 2016 election margin by winning Florida by over three percentage points. 

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Florida Realtors Back Affordable Housing Constitutional Amendment

Grant Holcomb

The Florida Realtors group has thrown their weight behind a 2022 ballot proposal they would like to see become a Florida constitutional amendment.

The political committee, Floridians for Housing, is putting the proposal forward after the Florida Legislature has worked for years to allocate affordable housing funds for other issues. Specifically, the ballot initiative would “dedicate 25 percent” of revenue generated from documentary-stamp taxes to be budgeted exclusively for affordable housing.

Documentary-stamp taxes are collected, in part, via real estate transactions and real estate groups have been frustrated with the legislature for years for rerouting affordable-housing tax dollars.

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DeSantis Continues Fundraising Spree with Small Contributions

Grant Holcomb
Ron DeSantis

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis raised more than $800,000 in the first two weeks of June, largely by small contributions from outside Florida. While touting some high-dollar donations, the recent fundraising influx has come from approximately 1,200 donors, including around 1,000 people who have given less than $1,000.

DeSantis’ popularity has gained traction nationally and is reflected by the states where his political committee, Friends of Ron DeSantis, has been receiving donations. Many conservatives and Republican voters have looked to DeSantis as a leader for his handling of COVID, the signing of “pro-law enforcement” legislation, banning transgender women from competing in women’s sports, banning Critical Race Theory, and prioritizing religious freedom.

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Val Demings Raises $1M for Senate Run, Touts Endorsements

Grant Holcomb
Val Demings

U.S. Rep. Val Demings (D-FL-10) raised $1 million in the first few days of her campaign against Florida Senator Marco Rubio for the 2022 election. The early momentum comes as Democrats will be backing Demings, who will likely be the Democratic nominee for the Senate seat, to try and expand their majority in the U.S. Senate.

Florida is continuing to be a major battleground state, and Republicans, likewise, will look to gain ground in the U.S. Senate by keeping Rubio in his current post.

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DeSantis Reports $7.5 Million in May Contributions, Continues to Significantly Outpace Rivals

Grant Holcomb

Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried raised only approximately $215,000 in May, according to newly filed campaign finance reports. Fried’s political action committee, Florida Consumers First, saw exactly $214,832 come in from primarily small-donor contributions. However, the May numbers do not reflect the campaign fundraising effort after she formally announced her candidacy on June 1.

Fried’s foremost competitors, Democratic U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist (D-FL-13) and Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R), raised $1.2 million and $7.5 million, respectively. DeSantis has been on a fundraising crusade in recent months, raking in nearly $14 million back in April and capitalizing on his administration’s move to ban Critical Race Theory, banning transgender females from competing in female sports, and to push back against “cultural Marxism” in May.

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Sabatini Challenging Rep. Murphy for Florida Congressional Seat

Grant Holcomb

State Rep. Anthony Sabatini (R-32) announced his intention to run against U.S. Rep. Stephanie Murphy (D-7) in Florida’s potentially newly drawn congressional district as a result of 2020 U.S. Census data and Florida picking up two additional congressional seats.

Sabatini is highly critical of Murphy and her policies which he says are a reflection of “corporate interest groups” in Washington.

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GOP Official Files Ethics Complaint Against Nikki Fried

Grant Holcomb
Nikki Fried of Florida

Chairman of the Leon County GOP, Evan Power, filed an ethics complaint at the end of last week against Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried. He claimed the violation stems from her failing to disclose more than $400,000 in income on official financial disclosure forms, which she quickly amended after her official gubernatorial campaign launch on June 1.

One of the sources of her income increase is from Ignite Florida, a consulting firm where she is sole proprietor and lobbies the marijuana industry. Specifically, she amended a 2018 financial statement on May 28 indicating she received $351,480 from the firm. Previously, she had to amend the same 2018 statements on January 30, 2020 saying she received $72,000 in 2018 income.

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