Associated Press
The wealthy attorney who bankrolled campaigns to raise Florida’s minimum wage and legalize medical marijuana says his electoral success in raising the state’s starting pay to $15 an hour over the next six years is his swan song in the voter initiative process.
Attorney John Morgan said Wednesday on a conference call that he was done with any future efforts to change the Florida Constitution through the amendment process. Two of his successes — medical marijuana and the minimum wage— were among the highest profile amendments in recent years.
Morgan, who is based in Orlando, spent $6 million on the effort to pass Amendment 2, which will raise Florida’s minimum wage from the current $8.56 an hour to $15 an hour by 2026. It was one of four amendments that Florida voters approved Tuesday night.
Business groups across Florida opposed the amendment, saying it would put a strain on the state’s pandemic-stressed economy and cost hundreds of thousands of jobs.
“Last night, the working poor in Florida won in a very, very big way,” Morgan said. “Last night the people of Florida showed their good hearts and compassion.”
Morgan spent millions of dollars on the successful campaign to legalize medical marijuana in 2016.
Morgan, who says he doesn’t have a party affiliation, has been a top fundraiser for Democratic candidates. He said he was prepared to sue if the Florida Legislature made any attempts to alter Amendment 2.
“The good news is we have a law firm and lots of lawyers and I would love to take this in front of a jury,” Morgan said.
3 comments
Sonja Fitch
November 5, 2020 at 6:19 am
At first I appreciated MORGAN! Now I am iffy! The disdain Morgan used to handle Gillum just didn’t feel right! KNOW who you support before you give! Recognize when the person gives up and gives the truth and is trying to make amends…FORGIVE! Are you becoming a white man privilege individual in spite of the firms representation of others? Sir?
Ocean Joe
November 5, 2020 at 6:55 am
Amendments will continue to be needed until the legislature acts “for the people” instead of for the special interests that fund their campaigns. John Morgan has shown a willingness to put his money where his mouth is and to get things done for the powerless.
A shame he wasn’t involved to stop that toll road going through the bend. It will destroy their way of life and make that part of Florida another stretch of strip malls and gated communities.
Buck Bell
November 5, 2020 at 2:08 pm
Morgan well knows that the real minimum wage is $0. While a slow increase over time may not displace a great number of workers, rest assured that those most at risk will now face unemployment, and small businesses are likely to respond with more part-time work. Large enterprises, however, are in a more favorable position to both absorb costs and invest in automation that reduces the need for humans in the workplace. This amendment hurts communities Morgan most ardently claims to support… from his residence in Hawaii. The better way to achieve wage growth is through education and mechanisms for employees to increase their value to firms. The labor theory of value died with Marx.
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