Ana Ceballos
Judy Mount, who was tapped to temporarily serve as chair for the Florida Democratic Party following Stephen Bittel‘s abrupt departure, had eyed a run to be the permanent chair but on Monday she said she reconsidered and won’t be seeking that post.
“I have always supported the Florida Democratic Party, its candidates and the causes so important to all of us true blue Democrats. I will continue to do so, just not as the next elected Chair,” Mount said.
Mount was serving as vice chair when Bittel, the leader of the state’s party, stepped down in shame in the wake of a POLITICO Florida report that has six unnamed women call his behavior “creepy” and “demeaning” toward women in the workplace.
Two former party staffers, both women in their 20s, told Florida Politics that Bittel would systematically talk about sex at work. That included asking individual women directly about their sex lives or suggesting they had a lot of sex because of they were young.
The women also accused the state party’s president, Sally Boynton Brown, of enabling Bittel’s misconduct, adding she would entertain those conversations at times.
“I said on Friday the focus was not on me. That’s true,” Mount said. “The focus is on advancing the causes and candidates of the Florida Democratic Party, moving forward and winning in 2018.”
Mount said she would support whomever is elected chair on Dec. 9.
