Evan Power re-elected as Florida GOP Chair by resounding vote

Republican Party of Florida Chair Evan Power won election to a full two-year term heading the state party.

And the final vote wasn’t close.

At a quarterly meeting at the Rosen Plaza Hotel in Orlando, Power fended off a challenge by freshly-elected Charlotte County GOP Chair Dave Kalin in a 183-19 vote.

“It has been an honor to serve as Chairman of the most successful state party in the nation! It would not be possible without the support and hard work of our grassroots leaders, who continue to inspire me. I am humbled by their support and look forward to working with them to reach new heights and recruit and support the best Republican candidates,” Power, elected for two years, said after the vote.

Ahead of his decisive win, Power argued that in the year since he took over as state Chair following former Chair Christian Ziegler’s sex scandal, the party had seen unprecedented electoral success in November.

“When I took over the party, we all didn’t work together as well as we could have,” Power said in a Chair speech. “Now we’ve had a complete partnership with the Senate and the House, our members of Congress, our statewide elected officials, and I think it’s been great to have us all working together.”

Power ahead of the meeting appeared on track to win the seat. Still, he had dissenters, with members of the Florida Republican Assembly and other allied groups protesting outside the convention. Many carried signs promoting Kalin, a former Charlotte County Supervisor of Elections candidate, as an alternative.

In a speech, Kalin said it was time for “a new day for the RPOF.”

“I stand here not to oppose a person, but an ideology,” Kalin said, “an ideology of division versus unity, an ideology that puts party before putting our constitution first.”

Protesters outside the event complained Power had removed numerous conservative activists. The protesters mostly were members of the Florida Republican Assembly from local Republican Executive Committees around the state.

“I’m not a divider. I am a unifier,” Kalin said. “I will lobby for the people, not for a private consulting firm. I am not compromised. My morals are not for sale.”

Power wanted greater unity within the party, saying he provided that over the last year.

“We’ve turned the Republican Party into the model for the nation. But I’m here to tell you, this isn’t the time to slow down,” he said. “The stakes are too high. The opportunities before us are too great.”

While Power retained his office, there was a shakeup in the race for Vice Chair.

Jovante Teague defeated incumbent Vice Chair Jesse Phillips, 130-70.

Meanwhile, all other incumbents were re-elected without opposition.