Peter Schorsch
Gov. Ron DeSantis, just before the new year, appointed three women to the Florida Commission on the Status of Women.
Included in the appointees is Melissa Stone, Cavalry Strategies CEO. Stone previously served as Chief of Staff for former Gov. Rick Scott.
Stone has been a outspoken supporter of DeSantis, most recently offering punditry supporting Florida’s chief executive amid expectations that he will make a bid for the White House, taking on the powerful former President, Donald Trump.
In a Herald-Tribune think piece speculating whether DeSantis is “peaking too soon,” Stone defended DeSantis’ track record, noting his 20-point re-election victory over former U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist and taking an “if it isn’t broke, don’t fix it” approach to the Governor’s chances.
In addition to Stone, DeSantis also appointed Maruchi Azorin and Maria Wells.
Azorin, of Tampa, owns and heads Villa Rosa Linens and is a current member of the Tampa Bay History Center, the University of Florida’s Blue Key Alumni Advisory Council. And the city of Tampa Mayor’s Hispanic Advisory Council.
Wells, of Jensen Beach, is a licensed real estate broker for Lifestyle Realty Group. She was previously appointed to the Florida Health Insurance Advisory Board by the Florida Insurance Commissioner. She was elected president of the Florida Realtors from 2017-2018 and as Region 5 Vice President for the National Association of Realtors in 2019.
The Legislature created the Florida Commission on the Status of Women more than 30 years ago, to further its mission of raising awareness for and celebrating the contributions and successes of women and girls.
The group consists of 22 appointed members. The Governor, Speaker of the House, Senate President and Attorney General each appoint four members. The Chief Financial Officer and Commissioner of Agriculture each about three members.
The group is mandated to study and make recommendations to the Governor, Cabinet and Legislature on issues affecting women, to be presented in an annual report in the first quarter of each year.
4 comments
Vince Edwards
January 2, 2023 at 3:53 pm
With regard to Melissa Stone, couldn’t the Governor find a woman in Florida who didn’t work for the executive who pleaded no contest to an immense Medicare fraud? Who has been a lackluster voice in Washington for the state of Florida? We judge future presidential candidates by the people surrounding them during this period of close observation and by those they place on advisory boards. They should come from the cleaner side of the party if there still is one.
Joe Corsin
January 2, 2023 at 8:42 pm
Rick Scott is a disgrace. Shame the article had to mention him.
James R. Miles
January 3, 2023 at 10:30 am
YOU’VE GOT THAT RIGHT!
Kim Love
January 5, 2023 at 10:18 pm
Would those be the women who are living in their cars with their children because they’ve been evicted from their rental home through no fault of their own and can’t afford a new place? 9,000 homeless students in Orane, Osceola and Seminole counties alone.
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