Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

A.G. GancarskiOctober 9, 2016

Florida Governor Rick Scott visited Jacksonville’s Emergency Operations Center on Sunday afternoon, as Jacksonville continues to recover from the wrath of Hurricane Matthew. Scott has been a fixture in Jacksonville and Northeast Florida since Matthew began to pose a threat last week, and spent all day Sunday in Jacksonville, including a trip to Jacksonville Beach in […]

A.G. GancarskiOctober 9, 2016

Update: The number of electricity customers in the state without power budged a little by the Sunday 3 p.m. report, down to 373,697. Despite a concerted effort by crews, there is still work to be done when it comes to restoring power to Floridians after Hurricane Matthew. Four percent of Florida electric customers — 373,697 — lack power […]

Brendan FarringtonOctober 9, 2016

Sure, lots of people in St. Augustine are picking up branches and leaves after Hurricane Matthew blew through town. But only a few are doing it surrounded by alligators. That’s what Jim Darlington and Amie Mercado were doing on Sunday, raking up debris in an alligator pit with the enormous reptiles just a couple of […]

Brendan FarringtonOctober 9, 2016

Marina owner Joe Taylor has a different take on whether Florida dodged a bullet during Hurricane Matthew. “We stood still. It dodged us. But we’re grateful,” the 81-year-old Taylor said. Taylor and his wife were in their second home in Portland, Oregon, last Wednesday when forecasts of widespread devastation sent him rushing to Florida to […]

A.G. GancarskiOctober 9, 2016

On Sunday morning, President Barack Obama announced he signed a disaster declaration for Florida in the wake of Hurricane Matthew. However, Gov. Rick Scott asserts it doesn’t go far enough. “The president yesterday declared a major disaster exists in the State of Florida and ordered federal aid to supplement state, tribal, and local recovery efforts in the area […]

Phil AmmannOctober 9, 2016

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Hurricane Matthew swept up the Atlantic Coast this week, leaving widespread flooding, several deaths and more than a million people without power. For his demeanor and handling of emergency preparation, response and evacuations ahead of the historic storm, many are praising Gov. Rick Scott, including the Florida Municipal Electric Association (FMEA), which represents 34 public […]

Associated PressOctober 8, 2016

Hurricane Matthew’s close-but-not-quite-direct-hit path along the Florida and Georgia coasts skirted the difference between disaster and catastrophe, meteorologists said. Even though Matthew eventually made landfall in South Carolina as a minimal hurricane Saturday, the path it took in the days before was a stroke of luck for the United States that meteorologists will spend years […]

Scott PowersOctober 8, 2016

On Florida’s northern Atlantic coast from New Smyrna Beach to the Georgia state line, residents may spend a second straight evening in the dark. Massive power outages are being reported as far west as Baker and Bradford counties, after Hurricane Matthew’s journey north up the seaboard Friday. 673,019, or 8 percent, of Florida electrical customers lack power. […]

A.G. GancarskiOctober 8, 2016

On Saturday, Florida Gov. Rick Scott addressed media in Jacksonville about the aftermath of and the recovery from Hurricane Matthew. Gov. Scott landed at Jacksonville’s Cecil Commerce Center after surveying damage in a flight from Daytona to Jacksonville. Before that, he had 15 phone calls with mayors throughout the region, from Hastings and St. Augustine to […]

A.G. GancarskiOctober 8, 2016

Jacksonville Mayor Lenny Curry briefed media Saturday morning on the catastrophe wrought by Hurricane Matthew. “It’s a new day here in Jacksonville,” Curry said, adding that we’re on the other side of the storm and “there’s a lot of work to be done.” More than 214,000 JEA customers lacked power as of 8:45 a.m. Saturday. Branches […]

Tag: Hurricane Matthew

Rick Scott: ‘Now is not the time for politics’

373K Florida electricity customers still lack power at 3 p.m. Sunday

Surrounded by alligators, Matthew cleanup goes on in Florida

Marina owner post-Matthew: Dodged a bullet? No, it dodged us

President Obama signs Florida disaster declaration; Rick Scott says it’s not enough

Public utilities praise Rick Scott for ‘coordination and cooperation’ during Matthew

Storm’s 50-mile difference between disaster and catastrophe

As of 6 p.m, over 673,000 Floridians still have no power

Rick Scott talks Hurricane Matthew recovery: “This state’s going to come back”

Lenny Curry briefs media on disaster recovery; evacuees can return home at noon