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Amanda Murphy

Bill Gunter to take another stab at HD 37 seat

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

Bill Gunter, a pastor of the Redeemer Community Church in New Port Richey, will make a second run for the Florida Legislature, seeking the House District 37 seat being vacated next year by term-limited Richard Corcoran. “Our great President Donald J. Trump has inspired me with his leadership and direction over the past year,” Gunter said in a statement. I will fight for the issues important to my fellow citizens if elected to serve in Tallahassee.” Gunter won a GOP primary election in 2013 in the special election to…

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Janet Cruz says Democratic House Victory was a winner on Election Night in Florida

in Statewide/Top Headlines by

Incoming Florida House Minority Leader Janet Cruz is in Miami, overlooking the the automatic recount expected to begin Friday between House District 118 Democrat Robert Asencio and Republican David Rivera, which ended Tuesday night with Asencio defeating Rivera by 68 votes out of nearly 63,000 cast. If Ascencio prevails, he would give Cruz and the Florida Democratic Party’s House Victory division a net gain of three seats in this election cycle. Though not as the goal she had originally targeted to move from red to blue this fall,…

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Donald Trump ‘tsunami’ in Pasco led to stunning result in Florida’s House District 36 race

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

In presidential election years, Florida Democrats perennially have high hopes to increase their meager numbers in the Legislature by winning crucial swing district races. They lost several of them on Tuesday, including most surprisingly in House District 36, where 21-year-old University of Central Florida student Amber Mariano knocked off Democratic incumbent Amanda Murphy in a stunning upset by 732 votes, or .6 percent. From another perspective, however, it might have been considered an upset if Murphy HAD held on to the seat she initially won in 2013. That’s because Donald Trump defeated Hillary…

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Republican Amber Mariano defeats Amanda Murphy in HD 36

in The Bay and the 'Burg by

Amber Mariano is heading to Tallahassee. Mariano, the 21-year-old daughter of Pasco County Commissioner Jack Mariano, defeated Rep. Amanda Murphy in House District 36. The Hudson Republican received 51 percent of the vote, or 34,337 votes, according to unofficial election results. Murphy, a New Port Richey Democrat, received 49 percent of the vote, or 33,589 votes. Mariano told the Tampa Bay Times she thought Republican nominee Donald Trump “really helped” her out. Trump, according to the newspaper, won Pasco County…

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Latest on the legislative staffing merry-go-round

in Statewide/Top Headlines by

With a tip of the hat to LobbyTools, here are the latest movements — both on and off — of the legislative merry-go-round. Off: Mary Kassabaum is no longer legislative assistant for Trilby Republican state Sen. Wilton Simpson. Off: Caroline Crow is no longer district secretary for Rockledge Republican state Sen. Thad Altman. On: Matthew Hunter is returning as legislative assistant for Fort Myers Republican state Sen. Lizbeth Benacquisto. Off: Sean Nixon is no longer legislative assistant for Cutler Bay Democratic state Sen. Dwight Bullard. Off: Kyle Langan is no longer…

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Tom Jackson: In Pasco, all roads lead to Mike Fasano

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

Whatever else we might be tempted to say in the aftermath of last month’s recent primary election, for those who live and/or work in Pasco County, this, above all, is beyond dispute: Pasco is Mike Fasano’s county. Everyone else is just visiting. Who but Fasano, the nudging, empathetic, perpetually beatifying champion of the “little guy and little gal” could have done in the Republican race for Pasco County property appraiser what he did with the fundamentally flawed Gary Joiner? That…

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