Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

A.G. GancarskiJanuary 15, 2018

For those interested in the intersection of public policy and civil liberties, such as they are, the Florida Times-Union/ProPublica “Walking While Black” investigation and follow-ups were a revelation. The article confirmed what many already knew: African-Americans are, compared to their size of the population, disproportionately ticketed for jaywalking and related pedestrian violations. Fifty-five percent of the […]

A.G. GancarskiJanuary 2, 2018

In 2016, Cord Byrd, Clay Yarborough and Jason Fischer overcame competitive GOP primaries to win nominations — despite powerful interests and strong candidates going against each of them in the process. The general elections, in each of their districts, lacked drama: all three beat write-in candidates, garnering over 90 percent of the vote. We asked the […]

A.G. GancarskiDecember 29, 2017

Politics in Northeast Florida is about to heat up, with state races in 2018 and Jacksonville municipal elections in 2019. Here are ten names worth watching. — Alvin Brown: Is he running for the U.S. House against Al Lawson? Mayor against incumbent Lenny Curry? He will have to decide, one way or another, this year. We’ve […]

A.G. GancarskiDecember 21, 2017

Sen. Jack Latvala is no longer a factor in Tallahassee; his resignation Wednesday sealed that, ending what accusers in two separate independent reports called “decades” of sexual harassment and quid pro quo coercion. However, Jacksonville politics saw prominent players on both sides of the Latvala scandal – and those players will have to deal with each other […]

Peter SchorschDecember 11, 2017

For those of you who follow me on Twitter, you may have wondered how much holiday eggnog I had to drink Friday night after I launched a series of tweets directed at Republican political consultant Brian Hughes. I ain’t even gonna lie. @GoMeteoric snitched to @FLPressCorps about @FredPiccoloJr moonlighting for me. Hughes thinks that would […]

A.G. GancarskiDecember 11, 2017

After winning her election for chair of the Duval County Democrats earlier this week, Lisa King issued a statement that read more like a call to arms. “The stakes have never been higher for our country. The ideals that we hold so dear seem to be under attack every day. While we are currently the minority in […]

A.G. GancarskiDecember 8, 2017

Reporters in the Jacksonville market got to know Brian Hughes in late 2014 and early 2015 when the Republican PR pro was handling the messaging for mayoral candidate Lenny Curry. Soon those reporters — or those who replaced the ones who moved on — will get to know Hughes in a new capacity as Curry’s chief of staff. […]

A.G. GancarskiDecember 7, 2017

Build Something That Lasts, the political committee linked to Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry both spent and raised money robustly in November. Checks cut were more interesting than deposits, which, by and large, came from the usual suspects. For the first time since August, Curry’s committee cleared six-figures, raking in $112,000. The committee has just under $475,000 […]

A.G. GancarskiDecember 6, 2017

Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry brought his political adviser into the administration Wednesday, naming Brian Hughes as his Chief of Staff. Hughes begins in his new position January 2, 2018. “To me and dozens of other elected officials, Brian Hughes has been a senior adviser on important matters of public policy and communications,” said Curry. “Working with me, Brian […]

Ana CeballosDecember 4, 2017

Before she filed a sexual harassment complaint against Sen. Jack Latvala, Senate aide Rachel Perrin Rogers allegedly engaged in a pattern of raising claims against fellow staffers at the Senate Majority Office, according to a sworn affidavit released Monday. But the head of that office, Republican Sen. Wilton Simpson, now says it is part of […]

Tag: Brian Hughes
Image via AP.

Freaky Friday: Jacksonville’s power elite takes on the local paper

Northeast Florida lawmakers preview 2018 Legislative Session

A.G. Gancarski’s 10 people to watch in Northeast Florida politics: 2018 edition

‘Family is everything’: Will Jack Latvala fallout affect Jacksonville politics?

Brian Hughes drops a dime

Duval Democrats ‘aggressively organizing’ as Lisa King prepares to lead them

‘He’s my guy’: Why the Brian Hughes hire made sense for Lenny Curry

$112K raised in November for Lenny Curry committee; new chief of staff gets paid

Brian Hughes, ‘bad boy of comms,’ to be Lenny Curry’s chief of staff

Affidavit: Jack Latvala accuser boasted about sabotaging people’s careers