The Florida Democratic Party announced on April 26 that it will contest all of Florida’s 28 congressional districts for the first time since 2018.
The party’s announcement comes amid weeks of messaging from both the Biden-Harris Campaign and the Democratic National Committee (DNC) indicating their intentions to compete in Florida in 2024 after the state has become increasingly Republican over the last 25 years.
Biden–Harris Campaign Manager Julie Chávez Rodríguez told reporters during a campaign call on April 2 that the party sees “Florida as in play” after the state Supreme Court allowed citizen initiatives for abortion access and recreational marijuana to appear on the November ballot, along with issuing a ruling that upheld both the 15-week and 6-week statewide abortion bans.
“30 years of Republican rule has failed Floridians. Property insurance rates are through the roof, we lead the nation in teacher shortages, and over a million Floridians have been kicked off Medicaid because Florida Republicans refuse to expand it,” Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried said in a statement.
She said the state needs Democrats who are willing to fight for the issues and programs that residents rely on the most.
The party launched a “targeted candidate recruitment campaign” on April 17, using billboards and digital ads in counties such as Polk, Madison, Miami-Dade, and Seminole.
One of the billboards said, “You’re already a leader. Run for office. Go to FloridaDems.org.”
Candidates and Campaigns Director Danielle Hawk is managing the effort and said it was to ensure “every seat has someone who is committed to fighting for Florida.”
“We all know someone who should run for office, and if there has ever been a time to step up and lead, it’s now. We hope this campaign is the sign that leaders in our communities need to see to make the decision to run, and the Florida Democratic Party is here to help,” Ms. Hawk said in a statement.
The party said it had received more than 100 applications for congressional candidates after launching the recruitment campaign.
“When we have candidates running everywhere, we give Democrats in every corner of the state a reason to show up and vote on Election Day. If I were Rick Scott or Donald Trump, I would be very nervous. In 2024, we are going to elect Democrats to help Take Back the House and defend the Senate majority,” Ms. Fried added.
Florida’s next qualifying deadline for county offices, special districts, and state legislative races is June 14.
Democrats face an uphill battle trying to compete in the Sunshine State.
After the party led in voter registration every year from the beginning of data collection in 1972 until 2021, a GOP comeback gave Republicans a near 900,000-person voter registration advantage.
During the April 2 campaign call, Ms. Chávez Rodríguez explained that Democrats have multiple pathways to 270 electoral college votes and were not ruling out winning Florida. The party has not won Florida in a presidential election since former President Barack Obama carried the state in 2008 and 2012.
Pollster Mark Mitchell told The Epoch Times that former President Donald Trump’s margins in 2020 make flipping Florida in the presidential election a tall order for Democrats.
President Trump won Florida by 3.36 percent in 2020, almost twice the margin he had in 2016 when he beat former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.
However, Jim Lee from Susquehanna Polling told The Epoch Times that Democrats don’t have to win Florida to benefit from investing in it. Contesting all of Florida’s congressional districts, for instance, forces Republicans to use resources in races that saw little spending in the 2020 and 2022 elections.
As a result, the GOP has fewer dollars to use in competitive races that could determine which party has a majority in the House of Representatives and Senate in 2025. The strategy also drains GOP resources for the presidential election in swing states like Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan, which will decide which candidate wins the electoral college.
Even so, some Florida Republicans see little to fear in Democrats’ plans to invest in the state.
“I hope Democrats get fooled again into allocating resources to Florida. Because it’s very expensive. And now it’s ours,” Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) told The Epoch Times.
Democrats are betting on increased voter turnout from having citizen initiatives for abortion access and recreational marijuana on the November ballot. However, some experts say the two issues are not enough to generate history-defying wins for the Democratic Party.
Mr. Lee said many voters would vote split-ticket. There are Floridians who will support abortion access and recreational marijuana but will still vote for Republicans in the presidential, senate, and congressional races, he explained.
Political consultant Aron Solomon told The Epoch Times that abortion and marijuana are not enough to give Democrats a winning edge in the Sunshine State.
“It’s something nice for the media to discuss, but it’s like discussing a 4–13 NFL team being a Super Bowl contender next year. Could happen, probably won’t,” he said.
The Epoch Times reached out to the Florida Democratic Party for comment.
The Republican Party of Florida responded to Democrats’ plans to contest all of Florida’s 28 congressional districts in a statement to The Epoch Times.
“The Florida Democrat party is desperate. They know Biden doesn’t stand a chance in Florida. They need to run billboards ads to recruit Democrat candidates. What is next, bus bench ads?”
“Florida Republicans carry a 900,000 voter registration advantage over Dems and it will reach one million by end of year. That is why the DNC is not really investing in Florida in 2024. As great as this is for Florida Republicans, the Republican Party of Florida takes nothing for granted and continues to work vote by vote, precinct by precinct to ensure victory in 2024,” the party wrote.
