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Jeff Brandes wins SD 24 seat after write-in candidate drops out

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

Jeff Brandes has won the state Senate District 24 seat. Although the 40-year-old Brandes had no Democratic opponent (or a Republican one in last month’s primary), he was facing write-in candidate Alexander Johnson in the Nov. 8 election. However, Johnson has now dropped out of the race, effectively making Brandes the winner. Brandes has been in the Florida Legislature since 2010, when he defeated Democrat Bill Heller in the House District 52 race in Pinellas County. After a single term in the House, Brandes ran…

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Jack Latvala comes out against medical pot; the internet reacts

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

Last Friday, Clearwater Republican state Sen. Jack Latvala announced he would be opposing Amendment 2, the imitative calling for legalizing medical marijuana in the Sunshine State. “Amendment 2 is bad for Florida,” Latvala says in a short video on the Facebook page created for his election campaign. “The constitution is forever,” he says. “Future legislators or judges can’t change it, even if science finds it harmful.” The reaction has been fierce on social media, with the announcement generating more than 100 comments on his campaign…

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Here’s where sh*t stands in Tampa Bay politics — the ‘it’s October’ edition

in Peter by

Hello, October. This is the final full month of the 2016 campaign cycle. In five weeks, we will know so much more about the future of the country, the state and our communities. But, no matter what, life will go on. For those in “The Process” — Florida Politics’ term for the unending legislative campaign/legislative session system — it’s just two months before committee meetings begin. In fact, like many people I talk to who are in “The Process,” we’re planning for the 2017…

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Sandy Murman takes a victory lap on approval of $600 million in transportation improvements

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Although Sandy Murman considers the $600 million in funding for transportation improvements over the next decade that her County Commission colleagues recently approved as a weaker version of her original proposal, she doesn’t mind taking credit for it. “I will tell you, and I’m being very honest. If it hadn’t been for me bringing my new plan forward, we would not have $600 million in transportation approved a couple of weeks ago,” she said Friday morning. Murman’s comment at the weekly “Cafe Con Tampa” event…

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Is Oscar Braynon running the best Senate political operation in years?

in Peter by

Democratic uber consultant (and frequent Uber customer) Steve Schale contends in a must-read, table-setting blog post about which Florida Senate races are worth watching that “Oscar Braynon is running the best Senate political operation I’ve seen in years.” Really? Technically, Schale is absolutely right. Braynon is running the best political shop in years because, when compared to previous Democratic efforts, O.B. looks like a black James Carville. Beyond Schale, there are other super-smart people in Tallahassee who think very highly of the Florida Democrats’ Senate political…

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HART board member Kathleen Shanahan latest to call for abolishing PTC

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The Hillsborough County Public Transportation Commission’s vote last week to approve new rules that could compel ridesharing companies Uber and Lyft to leave the area has given new life to those who believe the agency should be abolished. The latest entrant in that camp is HART board member Kathleen Shanahan, who, in a letter published in Monday’s Tampa Bay Times, invokes the U.S. Constitution in arguing why the PTC should not be imposing any rules on the transportation network companies. “The…

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HD 60 Republican candidate Jackie Toledo slams PTC’s vote on ridesharing companies

in The Bay and the 'Burg/Top Headlines by

Like the many Tampa Bay area GOP state lawmakers she wants to join in Tallahassee this November, Jackie Toledo said Wednesday she is disgusted by the Hillsborough County Public Transportation Commission’s approval of new regulations that could ultimately lead ridesharing companies Uber and Lyft to leave the region. “The rules passed by the PTC are clear examples of abuse of power and bureaucratic overreach, plain and simple,” the House District 60 Republican candidate said in a statement issued shortly after the vote came down. “They are…

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