Scott Powers
Former Second Lady Jill Biden is coming to Miami and Orlando on Saturday and Tampa on Sunday to campaign for her husband Joe Biden‘s presidential bid ahead of the March 17 Florida primary.
Jill Biden will be appearing at a Miami-Dade teachers union picnic at noon Saturday and at the Florida LGBTQ+ Democratic Caucus conference in Orlando Saturday evening.
The Orlando stop extends into Sunday, when she will join Orlando U.S. Rep. Val Demings for two church services. Demings, a Democrat, announced her endorsement of Joe Biden early Thursday.
The first is a 9 a.m. stop at The Experience Christian Center at 5230 Indian Hill Road. At 10:45 p.m., the pair will be at Mt. Sinai Missionary Baptist Church, 5200 W South Street.
Later Sunday, she will be in Tampa for a 2:30 p.m. Women for Biden Organizing Kick-off event, the Biden campaign announced late Thursday. The exact location will be announced later, the campaign said.
The Tampa event is being billed as a celebration of International Women’s Day.
Her appearances will be her third swing through Florida in support of her husband. In December she made public appearances in Miami, West Palm Beach and Tallahassee. In October she appeared at a Tampa fundraiser hosted by Sen. Janet Cruz.
This time she comes as her husband is riding high, having stormed through Super Tuesday winning nine states and taking the delegate-count lead from Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders.
Joe Biden also has risen into a huge lead in polls in Florida since Super Tuesday, after briefly dropping behind former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg.
Her appearances come as the Democratic campaign for Florida finally heats up. Bloomberg appeared in Florida Tuesday, and more appearances by candidates and top surrogates are coming.
Mrs. Biden will appear at the United Teachers of Dade Family Picnic at Tropical Park in Miami at noon.
That will be followed by a 7:30 p.m. appearance at the 2020 Winter Conference Leadership Diner of the Florida LGBTQ+ Democratic Caucus at the Marriott Orlando Airport Lakeside hotel.
Mrs. Biden is an educator who taught English to college students for more than 30 years and has been extensively involved in children’s education programs, even when her husband was Vice President. She has served as board chair of Save The Children. On the campaign trail, besides supporting her husband’s campaign, she has been the family’s most outspoken defender of Joe Biden’s son Hunter Biden, and his role in Ukraine, calling President Donald Trump‘s characterization of Hunter Biden’s role “disgusting.”
