Ryan Ray, Author at Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Ryan RayJanuary 21, 2015

State Chief Financial Officer Jeff Atwater gave the keynote address Wednesday morning at a luncheon celebrating the James Madison Institute’s “Thrift Week” initiative to promote less spending and more accountability in state government. As JMI President & CEO Bob McClure explained in his introduction to the CFO: “Being thrift-minded doesn’t just mean pinching pennies – […]

Ryan RayJanuary 21, 2015

Titusville Republican Rep. Tom Goodson has filed legislation banning revenge porn — the public sharing of sexually explicit media without the consent of the person depicted, often by former lovers — for the third time in as many years. The bill was conceived back in 2012 in partnership with Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey who […]

Ryan RayJanuary 21, 2015

Titusville Republican Rep. Tom Goodson has filed legislation banning revenge porn — the public sharing of sexually explicit media without the consent of the person depicted, often by former lovers — for the third time in as many years. The bill was conceived back in 2012 in partnership with Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey who […]

Ryan RayJanuary 21, 2015

Without any standard operating procedure governing the transition following the death of a Congressman, Bill Young’s family has had little recourse when the late lawmakers’s personal affects began to go missing, writes Warren Rojas in CQ Roll Call: A corrosive mix of myopic estate planning, lax oversight and a moving truck-sized hole uncovered in guidelines governing continuing […]

Ryan RayJanuary 21, 2015

Without any standard operating procedure governing the transition following the death of a Congressman, Bill Young’s family has had little recourse when the late lawmakers’s personal affects began to go missing, writes Warren Rojas in CQ Roll Call: A corrosive mix of myopic estate planning, lax oversight and a moving truck-sized hole uncovered in guidelines governing continuing […]

Ryan RayJanuary 20, 2015

Jeb Bush‘s prominent and idiosyncratic views on education are liable to make or break his presidential ambitions, writes Alec MacGillis in The New Yorker. Few people doubt that he’s developed an expertise on the subject. But whether his public policy conclusions will alienate Republican primary voters is another question altogether: Dan Gelber, a Democrat who served in the Florida […]

Ryan RayJanuary 19, 2015

As U.S. Rep. Kathy Castor and U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio both reach for a political advantage with their State of the Union “plus ones,” one savvy Florida freshman is doing things the old-fashioned way, playing it safe and burnishing friendships. Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum will accompany Gwen Graham to Tuesday’s SOTU address in Washington. Gillum will be an invited guest […]

Ryan RayJanuary 19, 2015

Toby Philpot has confirmed to FloridaPolitics.com that he will be leaving his job as Florida director of government relations at Health Management Associates to assume the role of chief of staff for the Florida Lottery. Philpot has previously served as political director for Senate President Mike Haridopolos before moving over to HMA. His new appointment, […]

Ryan RayJanuary 17, 2015

Juston Johnson has resigned as executive director of the state Republican Party, part of a chain reaction of events on Saturday afternoon that has dramatically changed the internal dynamics of the Florida GOP. Johnson’s exit came as State Rep. Blaise Ingoglia was elected RPOF Chairman in a runoff over incumbent Leslie Dougher 132-90, stunning many observers and upsetting a delicate […]

Ryan RayJanuary 16, 2015

Freshman state Rep. Jay Trumbull of Panama City has filed paperwork to run for re-election in 2016, according to the Florida Division of Elections. The 25-year-old Republican won big during his first bid for office back in November, taking 69 percent of the vote against Democrat Jamie Shepard and Green Party nominee Henry Newman Lawrence, […]

Ryan Ray
Image via AP.

Jeff Atwater speaks before JMI luncheon at start of 'Thrift Week'

Tom Goodson files ‘revenge porn’ legislation

Tom Goodson files 'revenge porn' legislation

C.W. Bill Young's family and staff inherit a nightmare

C.W. Bill Young’s family and staff inherit a nightmare

Good read in The New Yorker: The Education of Jeb Bush

Andrew Gillum to attend State of the Union with Gwen Graham

Toby Philpot next chief of staff at Florida Lottery

Juston Johnson resigns as Executive Director of Florida GOP amid upheaval

Jay Trumbull files for a second term in the Florida House