Eddie Speir falsely claims local GOP endorsements

Eddie Speir. Photo by Jacob Ogles.

A congressional candidate brought some heat on local Manatee County Republican clubs when he falsely claimed their formal endorsements.

Eddie Speir, a private school founder challenging U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan in an Aug. 20 Primary, claimed to have the endorsement of the Lakewood Ranch Republican Club. Not only is that not true, but party rules forbid the local club from endorsing in a Primary.

“The Club is demanding, in the strongest possible terms, that you provide an immediate retraction of your false claim of an ‘Unofficial Endorsement’ by the Club and remove all associated material from your website,” wrote Walter Steiner in an email to Speir copying party officials.

“In the meantime, the Club is notifying its members, the Executive Board of the Manatee County Republican Executive Committee, and all appropriate officials of the Republican Party of Florida that the Club has not and will not endorse your candidacy and has demanded that you issue an immediate retraction of your false claim of a Club endorsement of your candidacy for Congress.”

The fake claim promoted pushback from Buchanan’s campaign.

“The only thing faker than his pretend endorsements is his pretend cowboy costumes. A modern-day John Wayne he ain’t,” said a Buchanan campaign spokesperson.

The Lakewood Ranch claim is just one of several “unofficial” endorsements Speir lists on his website, including from the Sun City Republican Club, Riverview Republican Club, Manatee Patriots and Hillsborough County Republican Executive Committee (REC).

In some cases, links on the website go to videos of Speir speaking at club events, or to statements from individuals affiliated with organizations offering personal praise to the candidate. In one case, it connects to a Tampa Bay Times article noting that the sitting Hillsborough REC Chair has personally endorsed Speir.

The claims by Speir actually prompted the Republican Party of Florida (RPOF) to issue a “friendly reminder” that any clubs risk their charter with the state party if they pick favorites in a Republican Primary.

“No chartered club, group, association, or organization may participate in intra-party differences, nor may it, in its official capacity as a chartered organization support the nomination of one Republican candidate over another unless the Republican Party has voted to endorse that candidate under Rule 8,” reads an email from James Jones of RPOF Member Services.

Speir, for his part, blew off criticisms on social media.

“RINO’s (Republican in Name Only) have captured the political power of the Republican Party and through arbitrary rules, intimidation and coercion are forcing patronage to their ‘selected’ candidates. In Manatee County, they have shut down the Republican office which is used as a hub for ALL Republican candidates to disseminate their information to voters,” Speir wrote in an X post.

“This is part of a larger strategy to silence any voice in opposition to the establishment. It is that establishment, that has reduced the ranks of the Republican Party. Their actions are not aligned with the conservative platform of the party itself.”

Of note, Speir also claims endorsements from U.S. Term Limits, which praised the candidate for being the only one in the race to sign a pledge supporting limiting Representatives to three terms in the House. While the statement praises Speir’s “strong support” of term limits, the group did not formally endorse.