Staff Reports
Making a Better Tomorrow is once again targeting Alex Diaz de la Portilla, including releasing a mailer that calls Senate District 40 voters to tell the former state senator they “don’t need his predatory politics.”
The new mailers are the latest in a series of mailers from the Venice-based political committee attacking Diaz de la Portilla in the special election to replace Sen. Frank Artiles in Senate District 40.
In one mailer, the group calls on Diaz de la Portilla out for voting to raise taxes, cut funding to education, and cut funding for senior programs. It calls him a “cut-throat career politician,” who “can’t hide his true nature from us.”
“Just like a leopard that can’t change its spots, Alex Diaz de la Portilla is who he is … a predator politician,” reads the direct mail campaign.
The second mailer focuses on education, and claims the Miami Republican doesn’t want “our kids to have a bright future.”
“Over 16 years in Tallahassee, Diaz de la Portilla raised tuition and cut billions to our public schools,” reads the mailer. “By cutting public classroom spending by billions, raising university tuition by at least 15% in just one year, and cutting Bright Future Scholarships, Alex Diaz de la Portilla has proven he doesn’t want our kids to succeed.”
Diaz de la Portilla served in the Florida House from 1994 until 2000, when he was elected to serve in the Florida Senate. He served in the Senate until 2010, serving stints as the Majority Leader and Senate President Pro Tempore.
He faces Rep. Jose Felix Diaz and Lorenzo Palomares in the special election to replace Artiles, who resigned earlier this year amid scandal, in Senate District 40. The race for the GOP nomination is expected to be a bitter and expensive battle, with outside groups pouring thousands upon thousands of dollars into the race.
Making a Better Tomorrow has raised more than $289,331 million since 2014, according to state records. The group hasn’t received any donations since February 2017, when it received a single $4,000 contribution. State records show it ended May with $41,923 cash on hand.
