The Florida Department of Law Enforcement (FDLE) announced they have opened an investigation into the 2020 election related to Florida Senate District 9, which saw then-candidate Jason Brodeur (R) defeat Patricia Sigman (D) by approximately 2 percentage points.
The Orlando Sentinel reported the specific allegations have not been publicly disclosed, but noted the Seminole and Volusia County election, and the political scene at large, has been mired in scrutiny and controversy for months.
FDLE’s involvement is to be considered a “preliminary investigation,” according to Gretl Plessinger, a spokesperson for FDLE.
However, the election was previously subject to alleged dark money schemes from multiple groups. Floridians for Equality and Justice was founded with $250,000 in start-up cash, potentially violating Florida law. The group ran attack ads against Sigman.
Complaints against the group were not able to proceed due to an administrative error.
A second organization, called “The Truth”, spent $180,000 propping up Jestine Iannotti “with ads that appeared tailored to appeal to left-leaning voters,” according to the Orlando Sentinel.
The money provided to The Truth was also tied to other elections in South Florida. One of the candidates being propped up in a South Florida election was bribed to run for office by former Sen. Frank Artiles (R) to split Democratic votes. Artiles and the candidate he bribed have since been arrested.
Sigman is encouraging law enforcement to pick up the investigation.
“The body of evidence that has been revealed so far points to a coordinated, statewide, dark-money scheme to interfere with three Florida Senate races in the 2020 election cycle,” Sigman said. “These dark-money schemes deceive voters and undermine the integrity of our elections. It’s important that the truth comes out for the sake of future elections, so I am glad to hear that the FDLE is taking a look.”
Brodeur’s election victory has also come into the crosshairs of investigators related to the Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-FL-1) sex trafficking probe.
Federal investigators were notified that Gaetz talked with lobbyist Chris Dorworth about placing a “phantom” candidate in Brodeur’s race to assist in splitting the Democratic vote, according to The Hill. Ianotti, the independent candidate in the race, never campaigned and raised very little money.
Brodeur’s office has said he and his team knew nothing about the flyers posted around the district about Ianotti.
Dorworth said he never gave Ianotti any money, and “there would be nothing illegal about it if we had.”
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Grant Holcomb is a reporter at The Florida Capital Star and The Star News Network. Follow Grant on Twitter and direct message tips.
Photo “The Florida Department of Law Enforcement” by FLDE.
