Drew Wilson
Republican Joe Davidow officially began his campaign for House District 80 with an event on Hodges College campus this past Tuesday.
In his announcement, the Naples lawyer told a crowd of about 70 people that he was “deeply concerned” about the “large influx of new residents” to the state and how it may affect Florida families.
“I want my daughters to grow up in a state that provides a quality education, maintains the environment that we all came here for, and has excellent job opportunities available so they don’t have to leave to seek gainful employment,” he said.
Though Davidow just held his debut, he opened his campaign account in early June and has built up about $13,000 in on-hand money through his first four months in the race. While the total would be reasonable in many districts, he already has a bit of catching up to do.
Republican businessman Byron Donalds, Davidow’s main competition in the race, is sitting on about $61,500 in on-hand money, and his $19,000 September easily outpaced Davidow’s total to-date.
Democrat John Lundin is also running for the seat, but the district’s heavy Republican tilt – about 11,000 voters according to statistics from the 2014 cycle – would have sidelined him from having any real effect on the race even if his campaign account wasn’t hovering near the $100 mark.
Current HD 80 Rep. Matt Hudson, who is termed out of the House and running for the Florida Senate, cruised through his two post-redistricting election cycles. His only competition in 2012 came from a third-party candidate, and in 2014 he didn’t have Primary or Election Day challenges.
“People are tired of getting vague answers to direct questions. I am open and available to speak with everyone directly, no vagaries,” Davidow said, “I look forward to continue meeting the people throughout Collier and Hendry counties. Listening to the people allows me to learn what can be done to help them prosper. I need to hear from them because my only goal is to represent and serve their interests. The people deserve to have a Representative that cares as much about this community as they do. We’ve had great leadership in the past and I will fight to carry that quality and greatness into the future.”
