Jacob Ogles
Astor lawyer Richard Gentry announced he’s running for an open seat representing House District 27. The Republican promised a focus on affordable housing and growth management.
“As more people relocate to our great state, we must find ways to grow smarter, make Florida more affordable and get government working for the people again,” Gentry said.
The conservative lawyer is no stranger to Tallahassee. He served for two years as Florida Public Counsel, a Legislature-appointed position representing ratepayers before the Public Service Commission.
He promised to bring the same conservative values to the House and to continue acting as a watchdog for the public’s pocketbook.
“Now, more than ever, Floridians need an advocate to protect their purses as well as their values. I will be that conservative voice,” Gentry said.
Before that, he served as General and Legislative Counsel to the Florida Homebuilders Association. He lobbied the Legislature then and helped shape the Growth Management Act and the Sadowski Act, both landmark pieces of legislation impacting the construction of housing throughout Florida.
He also has worked with lawmakers on workers’ compensation.
Gentry in the past graduated from the Leadership Florida program. The sportsman has traveled from Astor to Tallahassee for work on public issues over the past dozen years.
He’s running now to succeed state Rep. Stan McClain, an Ocala Republican who can’t seek re-election thanks to term limits. McClain is running for the Senate in Senate District 9.
Gentry is the third Republican to file for the open seat. Summerfield Republican Stephen Shives filed in May. Belleview Republican Beckie Sirolli filed in July.
No Democrats have filed for the seat. Regardless, the race will likely be decided in the Primary. In November 2022, Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis won the district with more than 72% and GOP U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio won it with nearly 70%. In 2020, Republican Donald Trump won the vote for President in the district with more than 65% of the vote to Democrat Joe Biden’s under-34%.
5 comments
Swamp Man
January 3, 2024 at 5:19 pm
The man never advocated for Floridians while at the PSC, why would he start now?
What a creature of the swamp.
Julia
January 3, 2024 at 6:56 pm
Make $280 per hour. Getting a job is not easy. In any case, you have access to a wealth of resources to help you with your work style. Become motivated to promote hundreds of jobs through job boards and vx20 career websites.
Take a look at this………………………….. paymoney39.blogspot.com
Barbara Revels
January 4, 2024 at 1:15 pm
Richard knows this state well, having covered it from Pensacola to the Keys for his entire career. His knowledge and experience will be very valuable for his district’s constituents. As a life long Democrat I would vote for this Republican and friend.
Rino identifier
January 4, 2024 at 5:06 pm
Nah, he’s the epitome of of a Tallahassee establishment lobbyists. We can do better.
rick whitaker
January 5, 2024 at 12:00 pm
barbara, what kind of lifelng dem are you? if you are a florida dem, you vote for florida dems. if you don’t know what you want, then you don’t know who to vote for. a vote for any florida gop is a vote for desantis. shame on you. you are a dino it seems
Comments are closed.