Regional Chairs rolled out for hunting and fishing initiative
Family camp and hunt; Marion County, Florida; January 2018. FWC photo by Tim Donovan

youth hunting
A former Congressman is among them.

The ballot initiative to preserve hunting and fishing in the state is showcasing regional leadership, with 10 well-known Floridians taking point.

“We are proud to announce the Yes on 2 statewide chairs who will lead our outreach and fundraising efforts,” said Yes on 2 Campaign Chair Joshua Kellam. “In the coming weeks and months, our team will continue to organize, message and gather the resources needed to ensure victory in November.”

“As we talk with folks across the state about the importance of supporting Amendment 2, it is clear that Florida anglers, hunters and conservationists will be critical messengers on our path to victory,” added Robert A. Spottswood, Jr., Yes on 2 Outreach Chairman.

“Fishing and hunting drive our economy and our way of life here in Florida, and I am eager to begin building the diverse group of coalitions that will work to raise awareness about what’s at stake this fall.”

Spottswood will also chair outreach in the Florida Keys, joining other well-known names in regions of the state.

In Broward County, Steven W. Hudson will serve the role. He is the President and CEO of Hudson Capital Group.

Laura and Byron Russell will share the honors in Palm Beach. She is Chair of the Fish and Wildlife Foundation of Florida, and he is the CEO of Cheney Brothers, the food service magnate.

Former U.S. Rep. Dennis Ross will handle duties for what campaign organizers call Florida’s Heartland.

Meanwhile, Lee County Property Appraiser Matt Caldwell will do the same for Southwest Florida.

In West Central Florida, DeSoto Group founder and CEO Sonya Montgomery will run the regional operation. And in Tampa Bay, Commissioner of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission Preston Farrier will do the same.

Barco-Duval Engineering, Inc President Kathy Barco will handle Northeast Florida, while former Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commissioner Chuck Roberts will do the same in the Panhandle.

Finally, former Florida State and NFL footballer Peter Boulware is tasked with operations in the Big Bend.

“Every successful campaign begins with a group of dedicated Floridians ready to roll up their sleeves and work together,” said Rodney Barreto, Chair of the Florida Fish and Wildlife Conservation Commission and Vice Chair of Yes on 2. “I am proud to be part of the team charged with passing Amendment 2 and preserving the rights to fish and hunt in the Florida Constitution now and for future generations.”

A.G. Gancarski

A.G. Gancarski has been the Northeast Florida correspondent for Florida Politics since 2014. His work also can be seen in the Washington Post, the New York Post, the Washington Times, and National Review, among other publications. He can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter: @AGGancarski


15 comments

  • Dont Say FLA

    June 6, 2024 at 10:38 am

    Fishing and hunting are under threat such that they require enumeration in the state constitution as a right? uhhhhh

    • MH/Duuuval

      June 6, 2024 at 11:50 am

      This is coming from the same corner of the Florida political landscape that opposed the amendment to require pregnant pigs get a decent bit of living space before they become bacon and chops.

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  • Sundance

    June 6, 2024 at 2:38 pm

    It is the piece of American pie contribution..like shrimping times in Galveston bay and boats galore

  • My Take

    June 6, 2024 at 6:57 pm

    Has anyone figured out what they are actially up to?

  • tom palmer

    June 6, 2024 at 7:36 pm

    It is alleged is that this is nothing more than a GOP effort to get some folks in their base to turn out to vote so they can vote against abortion rights and legal weed,. Critics, who for some reason Florida Politics has not bothered to interview. are concerned the approval of the amendment would have some bad consequences, particularly setting back 75 years of science-based wildlife management.

  • Janet

    June 6, 2024 at 9:13 pm

    Don’t be fooled. This is a solution in search of a problem designed to get Trump voters to the polls.

    • Michael K

      June 7, 2024 at 8:35 am

      Indeed. This is a top-down effort to make sure the two grassroots citizen initiatives are defeated.

      So much for the “free” state of Florida..

      • Dont Say FLA

        June 7, 2024 at 2:25 pm

        “Free State of Florida” means Florida G0Ps are totally free to do whatever they want to citizens.

        Citizens should interpret it as “Flee State of Frorida”

    • Ron Forrest Ron

      June 7, 2024 at 8:41 am

      Ding ding ding WINNER!

      Florida’s Trump voters are angry and bitter. Ironically, a lot of that is because of DeSantis trying to emulate Trump, but that’s a different story. For the purpose of this story, they just angry and bitter.

      Florida’s G0P realizes their voters are angry and bitter and might well stay home in November rather than vote. So what does the Florida G0P do? They propose amending the Constitution for the exclusive reason of manipulating MAGA voters into going and voting MAGA this November.

      If I were an angry MAGA voter, a cynical manipulation that rises to the level of amending the state constitution, that would make me even angrier. I might like to hunt and/or fish, but I’m not so oblivious that I can’t see they’re trying to noodle me.

      The noodling would not make me go vote for the people who are doing it, trying to con me into voting for them!. It would make me stay home for sure when previously I was only considering abstinence this November.

      • MH/Duuuval

        June 9, 2024 at 1:49 pm

        Or, you could cast a vote for sanity.

  • tom palmer

    June 10, 2024 at 10:35 pm

    Assuming all of the people who have Florida hunting licenses are registered voters, they make up only 1.2 percent of the state population. Not very representative.

  • RealityCheck

    June 19, 2024 at 2:55 pm

    Right to Hunt amendments are being pushed in every state by rightwing groups like the NRA, Congressional Sportsmens Foundation and International Order of T. Roosevelt. (The current CEO of the latter was formerly CEO of Americans for Prosperity). They are intended to drive rightwing voters to the polls, and enshrine the power of the gun industry and hunting (and fishing and trapping) groups in wildlife governance in the U.S. “Traditional methods” include methods that most people find cruel, including trapping, baiting, snaring and hounding. There is no real threat to hunting and fishing in America. It’s just a useful bogeyman.

    • JD

      June 19, 2024 at 3:06 pm

      It’s basically their “abortion” and “weed” admendment – kind of poor in comparison for garnering voter turnout.

      The only place hunting and fishing is in play are states out west and being controlled with access / tresspassing laws – so the hunting won’t mean squat unless they can float above the land.

Comments are closed.


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