Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Scott PowersMarch 7, 2017

U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio lost leases on his offices in Tampa and Jacksonville in part because of landlord’s impatience with the incessant barrage of protests out front. Is Orlando next? The plaza in front of the downtown Orlando office building housing Rubio’s Central Florida office was the site of another protest Tuesday, as it has […]

Jenna Buzzacco-FoersterMarch 7, 2017

Advocates blasted Gov. Rick Scott for failing to mention the LGBT community in his State of the State address, despite dedicating a significant portion of his comments on the June shooting at the Pulse nightclub in Orlando. “We heard about the horror that our state has experienced; we heard about the heroism from first responders […]

Scott PowersMarch 1, 2017

As state Rep. Amy Mercado declares, Florida’s now-annual black bear hunt has become a “slaughter.” Mercado and fellow Orlando Democratic state Sen. Linda Stewart laid out bills Wednesday to ban the hunts for 10 years, as well as steps to keep bears happy enough in the forests and stop raiding neighborhoods. “The bears, we’ve encroached […]

Scott PowersFebruary 22, 2017

Brightline railroad supporters and Treasure Coast counties opposing the higher-speed train planned from Orlando to Miami debated their cases Wednesday before a Florida House committee, showing the high stakes of their fight. Officials from the train company, and two other train companies, were joined by officials of one of the counties, Indian River for a panel […]

Scott PowersFebruary 21, 2017

Driving like Arnold Palmer may soon take on a new meaning in Orlando. The Senate Transportation Committee approved a bill Tuesday to rename about four miles of State Road 408 as the “Arnold Palmer Expressway,” honoring the legendary golfer and longtime Orlando snowbird resident who died last September. “As you know Arnold Palmer was not […]

Scott PowersFebruary 21, 2017

With a rapid increase of pedicabs that apparently now include many that are currently unregulated, Orange County officials laid out a proposed ordinance Tuesday to require permits, insurance, inspections, and enforcement along International Drive. The ordinance is largely supported by a handful of pedicab companies that already are operating under a separate set of rules […]

Scott PowersFebruary 10, 2017

No one has identified Orlando as one of the “sanctuary cities” providing safe havens for undocumented immigrants while sustaining conservatives’ wrath and potential funding cuts from President Donald Trump‘s orders, but when the question comes up, Orlando responds with a puzzle. “While it’s not clear exactly what the definition of a “sanctuary city” is, it is clear […]

Scott PowersFebruary 10, 2017

Miami and Orlando are among the biggest homes in the United States to unauthorized immigrants, according to a new report from the Pew Research Center. The report, base on 2014 data analyzed by Pew, estimates that there are 450,000 undocumented immigrants in the Miami-megaplex that includes Fort Lauderdale and West Palm Beach, ranking the metro […]

Scott PowersFebruary 9, 2017

Freshman U.S. Rep. Stephanie Murphy‘s professional background in the U.S. Department of Defense has led her to pick up two subcommittee posts overseeing military counter-terrorism and readiness efforts, her office announced Thursday. Murphy, the Winter Park Democrat who was appointed earlier this year to the House Armed Services Committee, has been assigned to seats on […]

Scott PowersFebruary 3, 2017

The social fallout from Puerto Rico’s multi-fasceted financial crisis must be dealt with in more immediate ways in Central Florida where so much of the diaspora is fleeing, a panel of scholars urged key Puerto Rican political leaders in Orlando Friday. Their call for concern for recognizing, assisting, and empowering Puerto Ricans settling by the […]

Tag: Orlando
Image via AP.

Protests at Marco Rubio’s office say focus is on access, not booting him

Rick Scott criticized for not mentioning LGBT community in State of State

Linda Stewart, Amy Mercado introduce bills to protect bears, their food and habitat

Brightline, Indian River County duke it out before House panel

‘Arnold Palmer Expressway’ designation gets committee nod

Orange County moving forward on I-Drive pedicab regulation

Is Orlando a ‘sanctuary city?’ What’s a ‘sanctuary city?’

Report cites Orlando, Miami, for having large undocumented immigrant populations

Stephanie Murphy lands counter-terrorism, military-readiness committee posts

Puerto Rico crisis panel brings it home to Florida