Before taking over Ways and Means, Vern Buchanan must first beat Martin Hyde

Election-Day---Vern-Buchanan-vs.-Martin-Hyde
Fortunately for him, the candidate has done much of the job already.

U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan could enter his next term with greater power than he, or any Florida Congressman, ever enjoyed. But first, he must make it through one more election season and face a challenge from his Right.

Martin Hyde, a two-time Sarasota City Commission candidate, entered the race in Florida’s 16th Congressional District as an existential threat. Endorsed by Donald Trump associates Michael Flynn and Roger Stone, the brash and outspoken activist in many ways represented the conservative id incarnate that led to many an election night upset.

Granted, that seems less likely today, following a string of good fortune for Buchanan and the surfacing of some unpleasant demons for Hyde. But while there’s not much sign of Buchanan becoming Congress’ next Eric Cantor, there’s every reason to pay close attention on Aug. 23 to the GOP Primary in CD 16.

Most importantly, it’s a critical step to Buchanan becoming Chair of the House Ways and Mean Committee. Fortune smiled on the Longboat Key Republican after sitting Ways and Means Ranking Republican Kevin Brady said he would not seek re-election. Then, Trump recruited next-in-line Devin Nunes to run his Truth Social company, which ironically ended up headquartered in Buchanan’s House district.

Buchanan now will be the senior-most Republican on Ways and Means and appears the odds-on favorite to Chair Congress’ most powerful committee. That, of course, depends on the GOP reclaiming a majority in the House, something most prognosticators expect to happen.

And while Hyde landed several Trump-world nods, Buchanan nabbed the support of the former President himself.

The trajectory of Hyde’s candidacy, meanwhile, shifted in a wholly different direction. Pulled over for a traffic stop on Valentine’s Day, Hyde chewed out the female cop for writing him three citations. “I’ll just call the Chief. You know who I am, right?” Hyde told the officer.

An initial report sparked anger at Hyde, but the release of body cam footage turned the matter into an international incident, going viral and spurring death threats from around the globe.

Hyde for a period dropped out of view and hinted he would end his candidacy, but stayed in the race anyway, self-funding after all donations dried up.

More recently, a dispute with a woman in a six-year off-and-on romance that resulted in her reporting Hyde’s emotional instability. After she shared her story with Florida Politics, Hyde rushed to her home to demand a retraction, only for her to later renounce that as well.

Still, the campaign season hasn’t gone perfectly for Buchanan. Redistricting pushed the incumbent Congressman out of Sarasota County, his longtime home. While Buchanan initially showed interest in running in Florida’s 17th Congressional District, that ended up the turf of Sarasota Republican U.S. Rep. Greg Steube.

The Primary won’t mark the end of the road. The winner will face Jan Schneider, a former congressional candidate and schoolmate of Hillary Clinton who openly acknowledges victory against Buchanan to be unlikely. But she has said she wants to run, as much as anything, to be a safeguard should Hyde pull an upset.

The GOP nomination will be decided on Aug. 23.

Jacob Ogles

Jacob Ogles has covered politics in Florida since 2000 for regional outlets including SRQ Magazine in Sarasota, The News-Press in Fort Myers and The Daily Commercial in Leesburg. His work has appeared nationally in The Advocate, Wired and other publications. Events like SRQ’s Where The Votes Are workshops made Ogles one of Southwest Florida’s most respected political analysts, and outlets like WWSB ABC 7 and WSRQ Sarasota have featured his insights. He can be reached at [email protected].


2 comments

  • Sarah Rosenstein

    August 19, 2022 at 1:49 pm

    Vote for the lesser of two evils, and from a Republican’s viewpoint, that’ll be Martin Hyde. I could care less what one shouts when their in a moment of stress and rage, under such situations everyone blurbs out non-sense. What I care about is HOW is the candidate going to vote on certain issues. That makes Martin Hyde the best candidate.

    • Wyatt Weber

      August 22, 2022 at 12:46 pm

      You are just saying that so he won’t shoot you!

Comments are closed.


#FlaPol

Florida Politics is a statewide, new media platform covering campaigns, elections, government, policy, and lobbying in Florida. This platform and all of its content are owned by Extensive Enterprises Media.

Publisher: Peter Schorsch @PeterSchorschFL

Contributors & reporters: Phil Ammann, Drew Dixon, Roseanne Dunkelberger, A.G. Gancarski, Anne Geggis, Ryan Nicol, Jacob Ogles, Cole Pepper, Gray Rohrer, Jesse Scheckner, Christine Sexton, Drew Wilson, and Mike Wright.

Email: [email protected]
Twitter: @PeterSchorschFL
Phone: (727) 642-3162
Address: 204 37th Avenue North #182
St. Petersburg, Florida 33704




Sign up for Sunburn


Categories