Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Scott PowersJuly 6, 2017

Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings has made official the worst-kept secret of the year in Central Florida politics: that he’s running for mayor of Orange County. Yet Demings, a Democrat, hasn’t officially announced anything yet. He has, however, filed his paperwork, late Thursday, with the Orange County Supervisor of Elections Office, officially declaring his candidacy. […]

Scott PowersJune 29, 2017

Everyone in Orange County politics, it seems, is waiting to see if Sheriff Jerry Demings will run for county mayor, and he’s about to let people know. Demings, a Democrat, said Thursday he will be announcing soon whether he intends to run for Orange County mayor in 2018, an announcement that has set up dominoes […]

Scott PowersJune 2, 2017

A coalition of labor, faith and immigrant rights groups will be rallying in Orlando Saturday to push for an ordinance that would codify what city police already is doing – denying federal requests to hold immigrants in police custody beyond what normally is allowed. The coalition has been working with Orlando City Commissioner Tony Ortiz […]

Scott PowersJune 2, 2017

For the third-straight year, Orlando has been denied local anti-terrorism money for not being a significant enough target under federal guidelines, exasperating Democratic U.S. Rep. Val Demings who has pushed federal officials to reconsider their decision-making process. Demings, as have other current and former members of Congress from Orlando, has been pushing U.S. Homeland Security […]

Scott PowersMay 23, 2017

The crisis of heroin and other opioids that is pounding Orlando, every part of Florida and every part of America might not be any easier to solve than it is to blame, as panelists from Orange County’s Heroin Task Force blamed doctors, middle schoolers and dealers. It’s a crisis that is causing three to five […]

Scott PowersMay 1, 2017

As the future race for Orange County mayor continues to be a mystery involving potential major candidates still thinking about it but none yet committing, one name that keeps coming up raises questions of precedent and interpretation of curious language differences in the county charter. Former Orange County Mayor Rich Crotty, who served two-plus terms […]

Larry GriffinJanuary 17, 2017

Markeith Loyd, suspected in the killing of Master Sergeant Debra Clayton in a shootout last week, was caught after over a week of hunting by the Orlando Police Department Tuesday night. He’ll face multiple charges of first-degree murder and aggravated assault. Loyd has been the subject of a nine-day-long manhunt by the OPD as well as […]

Associated PressJanuary 10, 2017

Law enforcement officers in Orlando were engaged in a massive manhunt early Tuesday for a man accused of fatally shooting a police officer who approached him outside a Wal-Mart. The manhunt itself has led to the death of a sheriff’s deputy in a traffic accident and the injury of another officer. Master Sgt. Debra Clayton, […]

Scott PowersJanuary 2, 2017

A before-and-after time line now exists for Orlando – June 12, 2016 – and on this side of the Pulse massacre the city may be seen by the world and through its own citizens’ eyes as a very different place, with a new political perspective. Before June 12, Orlando was a city without an an […]

Scott PowersNovember 15, 2016

Long before young Trayvon Martin‘s tragic death sent destabilizing shockwaves from Central Florida throughout America, long before Black Lives Matter and Blue Lives Matter turned into a standoff, and certainly long before the divisive election campaigns of 2016, Democrat Val Demings was calling for unity in Orlando and in America. Now, thanks to her resounding victory last Tuesday, […]

Tag: Jerry Demings

Orange County Sheriff Jerry Demings files to run for Orange County Mayor

Orange Sheriff Jerry Demings to announce soon on county mayor’s race

Coalition seeking Orlando ‘trust’ ordinance for immigrants in custody

Orlando denied federal anti-terrorism money again; Val Demings says ‘we are baffled’

Opioids epidemic crisis blamed on careless doctors, unsupervised children

As Orange County mayor’s race awaits major candidates, can Rich Crotty run again?

John Mina: ‘Great police work’ led to the capture of murder suspect Markeith Loyd

Orlando mourns deaths of 2 law enforcement officers

Politics in Orlando now takes place in a post-Pulse city

Meet Congresswoman-elect Val Demings of Orlando