Ever since I acquired the rights to the perfect domain for my efforts ā FloridaPolitics.com ā I knew that one day, this website would have to be put out to pasture.
Well, after more than 51,000 posts, this is the final one.
Going forward, I am devoting my full energies to the Florida Politics brand, whether it be the website, email programs like “Sunburn” and “Last Call,” or our gorgeous, award-winning INFLUENCE Magazine. Keep Reading
Two days after the St. Petersburg City Council passed an ordinance limiting campaign contributions, which is expected to be legally challenged, Council ChairĀ Darden Rice was still exulting. A former president of the League of Women Voters in St. Pete, Rice was an early champion of the just passed measure that … Keep Reading
Four of the top five teams in the country kicked off their games at noon Eastern on Saturday, which suggests that all were expected to roll.Ā No. 2 Clemson, No. 4 Penn State and No. 5 Georgia all did just that. Then there was No. 3 Oklahoma. The Sooners and Iowa … Keep Reading
After hours of debate, the St. Petersburg City Council approved a campaign-finance reform measure Thursday, which could have national implications. The final vote was 6-2, with Council members Ed Montanari and Jim Kennedy dissenting. Once the final vote became clear, the crowd in city chambers erupted with cheers. … Keep Reading
If there was any doubt about the interest level in the ‘battle of the two Ricks,’ check the latest campaign finance reports for Rick Kriseman and Rick Baker, both of whom raised substantial money during the last two weeks of September.Ā … Keep Reading
Ron Sachs, one of Tallahassee’s premier pitchmen, comes from a progressiveĀ background: Iconoclast college newspaper editor, spokesman for Democratic Gov.Ā Lawton ChilesĀ and the state’s teachersā union, speechwriter for Democratic Gov.Ā ReubinĀ Askew. Matt Gaetz, a firebrand state representative from northwest Florida, is the picture of Republican values: Tax cutter, gun rights defender, abortion foe. So why did Sachs, CEOĀ of theĀ eponymous PR shop, give $2,500 to Gaetz’s campaign this week? (Here’s theĀ Federal Election Commission filing) Gaetz, Republican candidate for the solidly-conservative 1st Congressional District, is…
Hillary ClintonĀ is leadingĀ Donald TrumpĀ by 170,000 ballotsĀ in Florida heading into the final weekend of early voting. That’s what Clinton campaign managerĀ Robbie MookĀ said on a conference call Friday afternoon. In comparison, Mook said that on the Friday before Election Day in 2012,Ā Barack ObamaĀ was losing toĀ Mitt RomneyĀ in Florida by 15,000 votes. The president went on to defeat Romney in the Sunshine State by less than one percentage point. Political scientists have stated that there is no way that Trump can win the White…
Florida Democrats have surpassed Republicans in pre-election totals, aided in large part by turnout during the early voting period. Data compiled by the Florida Chamber of Commerce show nearly 2.1 million Democrats and nearly 2.1 million Republicans have already voted this election cycle. According to the Chamber data, Democrats now lead Republicans by a margin of about 2,600 votes. Democrats still trail Republicans in the vote-by-mail race, returning 919,091 ballots. Registered Republicans have returned 988,579 ballots, giving them a vote-by-mail…
R&B legendĀ Stevie Wonder will be joining President Barack Obama on stageĀ in Kissimmee Sunday in the campaign for Hillary Clinton for president. You can bet the message will be, Isn’t she lovely. Wonder joins a long list of singers and celebrities who have joined the Clinton campaign tours in recent weeks inĀ Florida yet may eclipse them all with his more than 50 years of songwriting, recording, performing and producing, and his 25 Grammy Awards. The rally, focusing on get-out-the-vote efforts, is…
An attorney for theĀ LisaĀ MontelioneĀ campaign is calling on local television stations to stop airing an ad by her Republican opponent in House District 63,Ā Shawn Harrison, claiming it infringes on copyrighted material of Montelione. TheĀ adĀ mocks Montelioneās ownĀ television adĀ released last month, which depicted a commercial film set with aĀ director, cameraman, technical crew āĀ but noĀ candidate. āSeen the Lisa Montelione commercial? You know, the one where she doesnāt show up,ā asks the narrator at the beginning of Harrisonās ad, titled, āWhereās Lisa?ā Mark Herron, Montelione’s…
From within the Hillsborough County Jail, an inmate claims he was deprived of constitutional rights after being denied access to the facilityās law library. Robert McDuffie, 57, filed a complaint in Hillsborough Circuit Court against the Hillsborough County Sheriff’s Office, naming a captain and several deputies. In the petition, McDuffie claims he wrote a civil complaint against one HCSO officer, referred to as Ms. āA. Hijazi,ā back in May 2016. The filing was regarding his denial of access to the…
Five years ago, former state Rep. Kevin Ambler and the founder of 1-800-ASK-GARY teamed up to create Arrest A.L.E.R.T., an app designed to give users access to arrest data from Sheriff’s Offices across the state. Neither of them expected it to fail so miserably. When it launched in 2011, the service didnāt gain a single subscriber or licensee. And while the company failed to bring in any revenue, four investors had sunk thousands of dollars to keep the company afloat.…
