Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Peter SchorschOctober 24, 2016

August’s primary elections did not produce a breakthrough for any of the contenders in the behind-the-scenes, internecine scrum to one day lead the Florida House of Representatives. Instead, the race to be House Speaker in 2022-24 has settled in for a long slog which may not be decided until, at the earliest, 2018. And, according […]

Mitch PerryAugust 30, 2016

Joe Gruters holds a narrow lead over Steve Vernon in the Republican race in House District 73. Gruters has a slight lead, 10,342 to Vernon’s 9,958. That’s Gruters with a 50.95 percent support, and Vernon at 49.05 percent. The winner will advance to the general election in November to face off against Democrat James Golden, […]

Jenna Buzzacco-FoersterAugust 10, 2016

For Joe Gruters, being a dad to three small children in an asset. His opponent, it appears, thinks otherwise. Gruters is demanding an apology after his House District 73 opponent — Lakewood Ranch Republican Steve Vernon — sent a mailer that, among other things, said Gruters’ three young children would be a distraction. The mailer said […]

Scott PowersAugust 3, 2016

In Donald Trump’s return to Central Florida after officially winning the Republican presidential nomination, his message and thunderous appeal are still all about the wall. They’re still about America’s diplomatic and trade deals destroying America, and “crooked Hillary,” and incompetent Washington leaders, and lying media, and his promises to fix everything. And they’re still about Megyn Kelly’s blood. In […]

Associated PressApril 18, 2016

A former Florida House speaker who stood up to Gov. Rick Scott is being pushed off the Florida State University board. Scott on Friday replaced Allan Bense on the FSU board of trustees with Max Alvarez, a Doral businessman and friend of U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio. He also reappointed two trustees including one, Joe Gruters, who […]

Mitch PerryMarch 16, 2016

We’ll save you our post-mortems about Marco Rubio‘s failed candidacy for the presidency, since you can find them all over the web this morning. We wrote last week how startled we were about the lack of support in his own state, and that was before Alex Leary‘s devastating portrayal in Sunday’s Tampa Bay Times. A notable […]

Mitch PerryMarch 15, 2016

Joe Gruters‘ association with the Donald Trump campaign is controversial, because, well, Donald Trump is controversial. Gruters became campaign chairman for Trump in Florida last fall. His other public duties include being vice chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, chairman of the Sarasota County Republican Executive Committee, and a member of Florida State University’s board […]

Brendan FarringtonMarch 13, 2016

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Florida’s winner-take-all Republican presidential primary was supposed to help former Gov. Jeb Bush or Sen. Marco Rubio. That was the thinking when the GOP-dominated Legislature changed the state’s primary date to the third Tuesday in March, the earliest date it could hold an election that will award all 99 Republican delegates to one candidate. But […]

Mitch PerryFebruary 29, 2016

Although Donald Trump said Monday that he does disassociate himself from white supremacist David Duke, critics of the GOP presidential front-runner are seizing on his reluctance to do so in a CNN interview on Sunday. Among those critics are Florida State University students angry that Joe Gruters, Trump’s campaign manager in Florida, sits on the FSU Board […]

Associated PressFebruary 26, 2016

Donald Trump is a part-time Florida resident — and a full-time problem for the home-state senator running for president, Marco Rubio. Rubio is counting on Florida to reshape the Republican contest that Trump has dominated by winning three of the first four states to vote. A loss in Florida on March 15 could doom Rubio’s […]

Tag: Joe Gruters
According to reviews, F1: The Movie is living up to the hype. Image via AppleTV+/Associated Press.

Primary elections did little to unscramble House Speaker race

Joe Gruters narrowly defeats Steve Vernon in HD 73 GOP race

Joe Gruters says mailer calling his children a distraction should disqualify HD 73 opponent

Donald Trump blasts Iran money deal, defends comments on Megyn Kelly’s blood

Weekend round-up: Allan Bense booted, Gene Cryer dies, union prez sentenced

Mitch Perry Report for 3.16.16 – How does Bernie Sanders move on from here?

Joe Gruters confident GOP will come together to back Donald Trump

Florida’s winner-take-all primary could kill Marco Rubio’s chances

Students want Joe Gruters off FSU Board, plan protest on campus

Donald Trump looms as cloud in Marco Rubio’s Sunshine State