Blake Dowling, Author at Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Blake DowlingNovember 3, 2018

So far in the 2018 election cycle, we have seen record early and mail voting, as well as the usual mudslinging. For about a month, my mailbox has been stuffed (like me at Thanksgiving) with flyers and mailers. In fact, one really ridiculous one arrived in regard to a local race; a guy who runs […]

Blake DowlingOctober 22, 2018

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This time last week, power returned to our house in Tallahassee. A lot of communities in North Florida weren’t so lucky after Hurricane Michael. Normally, I crank out a column pretty fast about the news of the day, but I had no desire whatsoever to write about what went down last week. As I sat […]

Blake DowlingOctober 6, 2018

Friday evening, I met with a crew from WCTV/CBS in Tallahassee; we talked Facebook. They wanted some info ASAP as to news of the latest Facebook breach breaking that day, offering to meet me wherever I was. That happened to be a fundraiser for Big Brothers Big Sisters at the local bowling alley. Hold my […]

Blake DowlingSeptember 29, 2018

Imagine you’re Joe-Bob-Sally Democrat politician; you are ready to surf the “blue wave” (and avoid the red tide) that may (or may not) be on its way and … Oops. Your entire campaign just got rocked by an IT disaster. It wasn’t Russian’s hacking or faulty hardware. It was another example of ransomware wreaking havoc […]

Blake DowlingSeptember 18, 2018

This week, Tallahassee ABC affiliate WTXL27 stopped by the office to chat on one of my favorite topics — social media posts, specifically video content. If I were to critique my own social media use, one might say I post too much. However, I try and stick to a once daily max for most platforms […]

Blake DowlingSeptember 8, 2018

As the glow of opening college football weekend wears off, and the tornado of Andrew Gillum versus Ron DeSantis begins, I read a very refreshing column this week from Skip Foster about non-biased reporting. Bottom line: If both sides of the coin are giving you heat, you must be playing it fair. However, I did […]

Blake DowlingSeptember 1, 2018

Tuesday’s primary elections are in the rear-view mirror. So, what did we learn? First, never count out the underdog. Our Mayor here in Tallahassee kept fighting the good fight all the way to the end … and got the W. Andrew Gillum shrugged off a 2-year FBI investigation in his backyard, the highest crime rate […]

Blake DowlingAugust 11, 2018

Elections are upon us. Arguments are bound to spring up, especially in our highly charged 2018 world of politics. We are presented with a good opportunity to see who has class — and who doesn’t. The worst (in my opinion) are negative ads. It reminds me of an old quote about college football recruiting: You […]

Blake DowlingAugust 4, 2018

I voted by mail this week. Done. Neither Russians nor Scientologists, nor Canadians were able to influence or meddle with my selections. What did those groups behind the headlines do to our electoral process? They created discord and a lack of faith in some areas — certainly one of their goals. The last administration told […]

Blake DowlingJuly 28, 2018

The internet. The Final Frontier. To boldly post what no one has posted before. These are the ramblings of me, on a never-ending mission to spread something you will find remotely helpful in your political, personal or business life. Let’s talk about posting on Facebook. Do you post links from the press on a campaign […]

Blake Dowling
The Yankees organization is generous with Helene relief in Florida. Image via AP.

Blake Dowling: We can’t stop election meddling, but we can put up a fight

Blake Dowling: Reflections on the storm

Blake Dowling: Another day, another Facebook breach

Blake Dowling: An expensive lesson in ransomware wreaking havoc

Blake Dowling: Social media shows the great (and ugly) of society, politics

Blake Dowling: It’s time for politics … and college football

Blake Dowling: Primaries are over; time to buckle up

Blake Dowling: Elections are here. Who has class — and who doesn’t

Blake Dowling: Elections and tech

Blake Dowling: The World-Wide Internets