Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Guest AuthorOctober 14, 2015

Many of Florida’s public officials must be enjoying the slow death of the state’s once powerful newspapers. In the 1990s, a skeptical reporter would be asking exasperating questions every time a politician or bureaucrat made a controversial decision. The painful shrinking of Florida’s papers continues, though. Last week Tribune Publishing offered another round of buyouts. […]

Mitch PerrySeptember 21, 2015

Last month Governor Rick Scott agreed to pay a Tallahassee lawyer $700,000 in taxpayer funds to settle lawsuits alleging he and members of his staff violated state law when they created email accounts to hide their communications from state public records laws and then withheld the documents. As reported by the Miami Herald, the settlement with attorney Steven […]

Mitch PerrySeptember 17, 2015

Florida House Republicans this week unanimously elected Land O’Lakes Richard Corcoran to be next speaker of the House of Representatives, beginning in fall 2016. In a speech to his House colleagues on Wednesday, the Pasco County Republican laid out several proposed ethics reforms aimed at “cleaning up our own house.” Among his proposed reforms are: Requiring […]

Mitch PerrySeptember 9, 2015

A month ago, the Miami Herald reported that most Florida motorists whose drivers licenses were suspended in recent years simply failed to pay fines, not because of driving while under the influence citations. Failure to pay such fees accounted for 77 percent of all license suspensions from 2012 through 2015, the paper learned. The story showed […]

Ryan RayAugust 20, 2015

Recently filed documents in Leon County Court as part of an ongoing legal challenge to the process unveiled a legislative underworld of lobbyists and consultants colluding with GOP lawmakers to help preserve the GOP’s 26-14 advantage and to protect incumbents. As recently reported by Mary Ellen Klas in the Miami Herald, and previous to the documents’ […]

Peter SchorschAugust 10, 2015

Well, that happened. The first issue of INFLUENCE Magazine hit the streets March 3 and, with all humility, was a smashing success. Ten thousand copies of the first edition made their way into the hands of lobbyists in Tallahassee, fundraisers in South Florida, major donors in Naples, and so many other political aficionados throughout the rest of […]

Guest AuthorJuly 24, 2015

In one way, supporters and detractors of U.S. Rep. Alan Grayson agree: He’s a lightning rod. The Republican Party of Florida loves this about him because it provides fresh material for attack ads; partisans because he revs them up. The Democratic establishment hates it because it screws up the possibility of having a clean, organized, […]

Guest AuthorJuly 23, 2015

In one way, supporters and detractors of U.S. Rep. Alan Grayson agree: He’s a lightning rod. The Republican Party of Florida loves this about him because it provides fresh material for attack ads; partisans because he revs them up. The Democratic establishment hates it because it screws up the possibility of having a clean, organized, […]

Mitch PerryJuly 8, 2015

Two rising stars in the Florida Democratic Party announced fundraising totals for the past three months on Wednesday. Florida Democratic U.S. Senate candidate Patrick Murphy has raised more than $1.4 million in the second quarter this year. The Miami Herald’s Naked Politics first reported the total. The Jupiter congressman announced his candidacy for the Senate seat […]

Associated PressJune 23, 2015

Sergio Bustos, a veteran political journalist, has been hired by The Associated Press as the news cooperative’s Miami-based politics reporter, a key position ahead the 2016 elections. Bustos, 52, joins the AP from the Miami Herald, where he has led that newspaper’s politics and state government coverage since 2010, worked with PolitiFactFlorida.com in partnership with […]

Tag: Miami Herald

Tom O’Hara: Floridians lose when struggling newspapers reduce staff

70% of Floridians say taxpayers shouldn’t cover Rick Scott’s legal bills

Integrity Florida “encouraged” by Richard Corcoran’s ethics reform proposal

Jeff Brandes plans review of state’s broken drivers license suspension policy

Report: Shadow process plagued 2011 Senate redistricting

Debuting today: Second edition of INFLUENCE Magazine (link to digital version inside)

Chris Timmons: Politics is organized around passion — so Florida Democrats need Alan Grayson

Chris Timmons: Politics is organized around passion — so Florida Democrats need Alan Grayson

Patrick Murphy, Gwen Graham release fundraising totals for 2nd quarter

AP Hires Sergio Bustos as Miami-based politics writer