Phil Ammann
Incumbent Bob Cortes has become the first candidate to qualify by petition in his bid for a third term in House District 30. The Altamonte Springs Republican represented HD 30 since 2014.
In a minute-long video Facebook video, Cortes said his campaign provided more than 1,100 signatures, and the process “should be completely done and ready to be qualified to be on the ballot.”
According to Florida Division of Elections website, Cortes needs 1,056 petitions for qualification to avoid paying a filing fee. As of March 15, the state certified 743 signatures: 126 from Orange County and 617 from Seminole County.
In the video, Cortes thanked supporters for their work, noting that his was the first campaign in the district to qualify and that neither Democratic opponent has submitted enough petitions.
“This is just the first phase, of course,” Cortes said in a statement. “We will now turn our eye toward November and do everything we can to make sure that we are re-elected so that the progress we have made of creating jobs and improving education is not reversed.”
In 2014, Cortes defeated Scott Sturgill in the Republican primary, later beating incumbent Democrat Karen Castor Dentel in the general election. In 2016, he defeated attorney Ryan Yadav to win a second term.
Drawing no Republican primary challenger for 2018, Cortes faces Democrats Daniel Anderson and Joy Goff-Marcil. As of April 16, Anderson submitted 147 petitions.
