Staff Reports
Last Call — A prime-time read of what’s going down in Florida politics.
First Shot
Sen. Marco Rubio held a “Getting Things Done” rally in Naples with the local branch of the Veterans of Foreign Wars.
During the rally, Rubio spoke about the importance of electing Republicans up and down the ballot and what Republicans need to do after this election.
“Naples was out in full force today at our Getting Things Done Rally!” Rubio wrote on social media. “Thanks to Floridians like them, we will WIN in 6 days.”
The Senator also took his tour to Tampa, Sarasota and Fort Lauderdale.
In Fort Lauderdale, he spoke to the National Association of Police Organizations for its Fall Seminar. The group endorsed his re-election back in June.
“Honored to have the backing of National Association of Police Organizations (NAPO) and every major law enforcement organization in Florida!” he wrote on social media. “Thank you for all you do to keep our communities safe.”
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Sabato’s Crystal Ball is moving the race to replace U.S. Rep. Ted Deutch from a safe Democratic race to a likely Democratic race.
In an analysis from Managing Editor Kyle Kondik, the team says coattails matter, and Rubio and Gov. Ron DeSantis are sailing to re-election.
“If the statewide Republicans win going away and produce big coattails, could they surprisingly shake loose 1 of the 8 solidly Democratic House seats? We doubt it, but just as a way of noting the possibility, we’re moving the currently vacant FL-23 from Safe Democratic to Likely Democratic,” Kondik wrote.
Democrat Jared Moskowitz is leading the race against Republican Joe Budd. Moskowitz is a strong candidate as a former member of the DeSantis administration who is outraising his opponent, Sabato notes.
“This change really has little to do with the race itself; it’s just about wave potential, particularly in Florida,” Kondik wrote.
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Political science students at St. Leo University will play the role of political pundits this Election Day, with pre-election predictions and live analysis the night of Election Day.
It’s part of the class “Campaigns & Elections” taught by instructor Frank Orlando. Students are analyzing 20 races in Florida and across the country, and they’ll analyze their predictions from 8 p.m. to 10 p.m. on Tuesday in front of a live audience. Guests are welcome to attend in TECO Hall in the Tapia College of Business building.
“They will be the undisputed experts,” Orlando said. “They will know who is going to win; they’ll make predictions, they’ll be able to analyze election results, and on Election Night, they will get to play the pundits that get to tell us what is going on.”
The class has also prepared a video of Orlando and students explaining the significance of the project and the skills the young pundits will nurture.
To view the video, click on the image below:
Evening Reads
—“Parkland school shooter sentenced to life in prison” via Rafael Olmeda and Shira Moolten of the South Florida Sun-Sentinel
—“Before Gov. Ron DeSantis could say he kicked migrants out of Florida, he had to pay to fly them in” via Mary Ellen Klas of the Miami Herald/Tampa Bay Times Tallahassee Bureau
—“Democrats keep falling for ‘superstar losers’” via Jacob Stern of The Atlantic
—“The 3 possible outcomes of the midterms in Congress, explained” via Rachel M. Cohen, Dylan Scott and Li Zhou of Vox
—“Donald Trump lawyers saw Justice Thomas as ‘only chance’ to stop 2020 Election certification” via Kyle Cheney, Josh Gerstein and Nicholas Wu of POLITICO
—“Ashley Moody wants higher state salaries for ‘top legal talent’” via Gray Rohrer of Florida Politics
—“Despite no reports of fentanyl in Halloween candy, Moody spox says warnings sparked ‘important conversations’” via A.G. Gancarski of Florida Politics
—“Florida GOP takes lead in early voting in traditionally blue Miami-Dade” via Jiselle Lee of Fresh Take Florida
—“Central Florida election leaders warn of voter intimidation” via Steven Lemongello of the Orlando Sentinel
—“Inverness officials criticized over ‘Cooterween’ contest winner depicting a Mexican jumping a wall” via Mike Wright of Florida Politics
—“Jacksonville closes in on ‘remedy’ redistricting map” via A.G. Gancarski of Florida Politics
—“Why daylight saving time is worse for your body than standard time” via Aaron Steckelberg and Lindsey Bever of The Washington Post
Quote of the Day
“When people remember that school, they are going to remember the strength of that community. ”
— Broward Circuit Judge Elizabeth Scherer ahead of the life sentence for the Parkland shooter.
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