Jacob Ogles
Correction: The wrong dates were initially provided for this story. The information has been corrected.
Rep. Spencer Roach has scheduled a campaign kickoff for his re-election campaign at in Charlotte County on April 25 at the Discovery Center at Woodlea Hall in Babcock Ranch. The North Fort Myers Republican will hold a separate kickoff the following day at the Shell Factory on April 26.
“When I first announced my candidacy four years ago, I promised to defend liberty and advance conservative values,” Roach wrote in an email to supporters. “And during my time in the Florida House, I’ve done exactly that.”
Roach will run in the newly drawn House District 76. It’s the district where he lives and he’s the only incumbent Representative running there. That’s good news, because early maps paired him with a Republican colleague. At the same time, the new district bears a distinctly different shape from his existing House District 79.
Roach will retain his constituency in north Lee County, located primarily north of the Caloosahatchee River. But most of east Lee, including Lehigh Acres, lands in the open House District 77 territory. Meanwhile, he will be introducing himself this campaign season to new voters, both a batch in Lee County who live in northeast Cape Coral and north of the city limits, and those who live in east and south Charlotte County or anywhere in DeSoto County.
But he will still represent a largely suburban and rural population. And it’s still a deeply conservative one. About 65% of the voters in the new district voted for Republican Donald Trump in the last Presidential Election, with just over 34% backing Democrat Joe Biden.
He stressed many of the conservative accomplishments this term in the recent announcement.
“I voted to protect the unborn, defend the Second Amendment, ban sanctuary cities, protect foster children, restore water quality, return technical training to high schools, lower taxes, and preempt government interference in the free market,” he said. “I stood with Gov. (Ron) DeSantis against assaults on freedom from the federal government, and here at home I’ve led the fight against our radical School Board’s attempt to teach (critical race theory) and advance a trans-agenda in the classroom.”
He also touted recent pushback against Disney over a so-called “Parental Rights in Education” law. Roach has led efforts to end the corporation’s self-governance privileges on the Walt Disney World resort property in Central Florida.
“Recently I’ve stood against the most powerful corporate interests in Florida as they leverage vast financial resources to oppose parents’ rights,” Roach wrote.
After two terms in the House, Roach said his work is not done.
“It has been the honor of my life to serve as your voice in the state capital, and I am asking for your support to continue the fight,” he said. “It has never been more important to make sure we are sending strong conservatives to Tallahassee who are not afraid to stand up and fight.”
