Jacob Ogles
It looks like politics is more than just a game for Luther “Uncle Luke” Campbell. The 2 Live Crew frontman-turned-political activist filed paperwork with the Federal Election Commission (FEC) for a potential run for Congress in Florida’s 20th Congressional District.
The Pembroke Pines Democrat filed a statement of candidacy on April 23. He still needs to qualify with the Florida Division of Elections by noon on April 26.
Sources close to Campbell said his mind is still not made up yet about running, largely because of concerns about how to balance a music career with being an elected official.
But opening an FEC account shows he’s taking all the steps to challenge U.S. Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick in a Democratic Primary.
Campbell has teased a potential run while promoting the Freaknik documentary he recently produced for Hulu.
He released the single “Don’t Stop” as recently as 2021. But he has also become a political force in South Florida. He campaigned for Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava earlier this year. His brother Stanley Campbell has already qualified as a Democratic U.S. Senate candidate in Florida this year.
Cherfilus-McCormick, who paid her qualification fee with the state earlier this month, first won her U.S. House seat during a Special Election in January 2022. The Miramar Democrat succeeded the late U.S. Rep. Alcee Hastings, whom she had previously challenged for the seat.
During the Special Election, she narrowly came out on top of a crowded Democratic field, beating former Broward County Mayor Dale Holness by just five votes. But later the same year, McCormick beat Holness more decisively in an August Primary before winning her first full term in Congress over Republican Drew-Montez Clark.
CD 20 remains one of the most heavily Democratic congressional districts in Florida. In 2020, Democrat Joe Biden won nearly 76% of the vote there even as Republican Donald Trump won statewide.
So the Democratic Primary will once again likely determine the outcome of the race. Indeed, no Republicans have filed as candidates with the state or the FEC. That raises the possibility that Cherfilus-McCormick and Campbell could face off in an open Primary where all voters in the district can vote.
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Peter Schorsch of Florida Politics contributed to this report.
2 comments
Dont Say FLA
April 24, 2024 at 4:07 pm
If Mr Campbell does somehow win and takes office, let’s pray that turns out better than that one time Donald Trump ran a campaign just for self-promotion but somehow won the election and took office.
It's Complicated
April 26, 2024 at 2:04 pm
I hope this district reelects Cherfilus-McCormick, because it is good to have Democrats in Congress with firsthand provider-level professional knowledge of healthcare who have signed the front side of a paycheck.
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