Melissa Blazier, Collier County Supervisor of Elections. (Photo: CCSoE)
Sept. 6, 2024 by David Silverberg
Melissa Blazier has officially been elected Supervisor of Elections for Collier County, Fla.
The election was confirmed when Edward Gubala, who was running as an independent write-in candidate in the general election, withdrew his candidacy on Wednesday, Sept. 4.
Edward Gubala (Photo: CCSoE)
Blazier won the primary election on Aug. 20 against candidates Timothy Guerrette and David Schaffel. Gubala was a write-in candidate but since he is no longer running in the November general election, she has officially been elected.
“I’m thrilled to announce that I have officially been elected as your Supervisor of Elections for the next four years!” Blazier announced in a Sept. 4 Facebook post. “My opponent, a write-in candidate, officially withdrew today, making this victory official.”
Addressing supporters, she stated: “This moment results from a year of hard work and unwavering support from all of you. I couldn’t have done it without your trust and commitment to ensuring fair, ethical, and secure elections in Collier County.”
Gubala, 63, a 30-year veteran firefighter and since 2004 a Naples mortgage broker with MVP Realty, entered the race just prior to the June 14 deadline as a spoiler, or “ghost” candidate to aid Guerrette. As such he closed the primary election to non-Republicans, effectively disenfranchising 119,115 independent and Democratic Collier County voters.
Edward Gubala in Tim Guerrette campaign regalia.
Guerrette finished the primary race in third place with just 16.8 percent of the vote.
Gubala never collected or spent any money on his campaign, never posted a website or produced any campaign material and never gave media interviews or conducted campaign activities.
Ghosting candidates is a frequent, entirely legal, political tactic in Florida in order to exclude non-party members from primary elections.
Pendergrass: ‘Their goal is to drive people to the polls’
The Lee County Board of Commissioners meeting on Sept. 3, 2024. (Photo: Dan Becker)
Sept. 4, 2024 by David Silverberg
On Tuesday, Sept. 3, the Lee County Board of Commissioners voted 4 to 1 to pass a resolution condemning Amendment 4, a proposed amendment to the state constitution guaranteeing a woman’s right to choose abortion.
The sole dissent was by Commissioner Raymond Sandelli (R-District 3) who voted against the resolution.
The commissioners heard 2 hours and 20 minutes of public comment on the proposed resolution. This was in addition to two previous sessions of public comment on Aug. 6 and 20. Demonstrators on both sides of the issue protested outside the building prior to the meeting’s start.
“I haven’t seen that much engagement with constituents on this many issues,” said Commissioner Kevin Ruane (R-District 1).
Commissioner Ray Sandelli (R-District 3) (Image:LCBC)
Sandelli, who has announced his retirement at the end of this year, said that he was “taken aback” when the Board was asked to handle the issue.
“Personally, I am pro-life,” he said. “And when I cast my individual vote in November, I will do so accordingly. I trust you will honor my position as I honor yours. That said, I was taken aback when the Board was asked to get involved in this.
“But my constituency is all of Lee County, be it a yes vote or a no vote. Again, the final decision will come from all who will vote in November. We should carefully study the topic, help inform people, trust our own beliefs and vote accordingly as we see fit.
“So my feeling is, I would not adopt the resolution as it stands.”
In contrast, commissioners Mike Greenwell (R-District 5), Brian Hamman (R-District 4) and Ruane said they were voting against the resolution because they considered it “vague.”
“This resolution does not change anyone’s ability to vote,” said Commission Chair Greenwell, who introduced the resolution. “It simply would be a resolution saying, ‘Please read [the amendment]. Please look at it.’ I think the language is vague for a reason and I would not consider myself a leader if I didn’t stand up and read the resolution and say, ‘There’s something wrong here.’ And I think it’s important that we bring that up.’”
He added, “We’re a divided country. We should always help the unborn.”
Hamman said he had “compassion and love and respect for people we heard here today” but he agreed with Greenwell that the amendment’s language is “very misleading and I think voters need to be made aware that this is something that needs a second look.”
Ruane also criticized what he said was “vagueness in the wording.” He insisted the Board had a right to bring up the resolution and struck a defiant note against critics.
“I’ve heard a lot of emotional speakers and I’ve excused some emotion that if I don’t vote this particular way you’re going to vote me out of office. That’s your prerogative and every day I make a decision up here, that’s what I do,” he said. “And if this vote changes your mind so be it.”
But it was Commissioner Cecil Pendergrass who had a unique view of the whole pro-choice, Amendment 4 effort, which he considered to be a Democratic Party plot to drive voters to the polls.
Commissioner Cecil Pendergrass. (Photo: LCBC)
“We should talk about the big elephant in the room,” he said. The reason the whole issue of abortion was before the Board, he argued, was because the Democratic National Committee (DNC) had decided to challenge Florida’s six-week abortion ban and wanted to flip Florida Democratic.
“The DNC decided over a year ago since they had either DeSantis or another resident of Florida running for president, they’re going to take the state of Florida, they need to push the polls to guide people to vote this year,” he said. “So here’s what they used, they used an emotional issue like this, bring it forth, that’s what their neighbors have to have this discussion, which, at the end of the day, we don’t want to have this discussion with our neighbors but we have to now, because they decided to make this the issue to bring people to the polls.”
He said that the amendment had “very vague language they threw together,” knowing it would be challenged.
“Their goal is to drive people to the polls in November for the presidential election, which is unfortunate because they’re using women’s rights, they’re using as an issue for that reason,” he charged. He said he was also voting for the resolution condemning Amendment 4 because he considered it vague.
Commentary: The Pendergrass perspective
Somehow missing from Pendergrass’ perspective was the fact that women lost their right to choose in 2022 with the Dobbs decision; that this caused a spontaneous reaction among people who acutely felt that loss; that the movement to pass Amendment 4 might be a grassroots response to restore that lost right; that 993,387 Floridians signed the petition to put it on the ballot, 101,864 more than was required; that the state Supreme Court ruled the amendment’s language to be very clear and understandable to all voters; that there are plenty of factors propelling voters to the polls that don’t require some plot from the DNC; that no matter how uncomfortable and inconvenient it is for him and his neighbors, larger forces are driving this energetic discussion of reproductive rights and not some Democratic Party plot; and that it was anti-choice activists who first proposed and insisted upon this entirely unnecessary, divisive and inappropriate resolution, creating the controversy in Lee County, Fla., that he so deplores.
An uncharitable observer might call Pendergrass’ view of the situation “stupid.” A cruder observer might add an adjective starting with the letter “f.”
On one thing and one thing alone, he was right and on which everyone can agree: there was indeed a “big elephant” in the room.
Like all American schools, Southwest Florida’s classrooms would feel the impact of Project 2025. (Image: First Focus on Children)
Sept. 3, 2024 by David Silverberg
If it came to pass that Donald Trump won the election and his administration implemented Project 2025’s educational proposals, how would Florida’s parents, teachers, students and school staff be affected?
Project 2025 is the sweeping, 887-page volume of very specific policy recommendations for presidential and legislative changes to be made under a conservative president, in this case, upon the election of Donald Trump. It is a continuation of the Heritage Foundation’s Mandate for Leadership program that has been issued every four years since 1980.
Donald Trump has disavowed any knowledge of, or familiarity with, Project 2025, although the Heritage Foundation organizers say that he implemented 67 percent of their recommendations in his first administration. Former Trump staffers have been heavily involved in Project 2025’s formulation, including Sen. James David “JD” Vance (R-Ohio), Trump’s running mate.
When it comes to education, the Project 2025 recommendation that has received the most attention is the disestablishment of the US Department of Education (ED).
The very first sentence of Project 2025’s education chapter states: “Federal education policy should be limited and, ultimately, the federal Department of Education should be eliminated.”
That proposal has alarmed parents, teachers and education experts. It has energized Trump’s opponents, whether Democrats, independents or traditional Republicans who value learning. It is the first thing that critics cite when they attack Project 2025’s education ideas.
“We are not going to let him eliminate the Department of Education that funds our public schools!” Vice President Kamala Harris declared in her speech to the Democratic National Convention on Aug. 23, to intense and prolonged applause.
Trump, despite his disavowals of Project 2025, has doubled down on ending the department.
During a rambling X interview with Elon Musk on Aug. 13 he pledged to “close the Department of Education, move education back to the states.” As recently as Friday, Aug. 30, he repeated his position at a Washington, DC conference held by Moms for Liberty—who also advocate eliminating the department.
Beyond the agency
Project 2025’s education recommendations go well beyond just ending the department.
They are contained in Chapter 11 (page 319), a sweeping chapter of 44 pages including citations, that covers a wide variety of education-related policies and proposals. It appears under the byline of Lindsey Burke, the Heritage foundation’s director of the Center for Education Policy. She has worked at the Heritage Foundation for over 16 years.
Project 2025 gathers up all the ideas that have been circulating in conservative circles, some of very long standing, and then puts them into tangible, concrete recommendations for action.
Among these ideas are many that are already in force in Florida, including expanding non-public school alternatives like charter schools, providing parents with vouchers to use in non-public schools, lowering accreditation requirements for non-public schools, passing legislation to prevent the teaching of critical race theory, and passing a “Parents Bill of Rights” that has led to practices such as book bans.
All of these would have significant consequences if implemented nationally.
But eliminating the Department of Education is Project 2025’s big idea, its headline and the one getting the most attention.
Looking ahead at the consequences of such an action is necessarily speculative, of course. But some results can be imagined—and the Collier County, Fla., public school district provides a microcosm that can give a sense of the impact at the grassroots level.
A quick history: the Department of Education
Republicans have sought termination of the current Department of Education ever since it came into being in 1980, when it was split off from the then Department of Health, Education and Welfare.
According to the department’s official history, a Department of Education was first created in 1867 to collect data about the nation’s schools. It had a budget of $15,000 and four employees. This happened in the midst of Reconstruction and the first wave of education for freed people and their children.
The next year the department was demoted to an Office of Education because of concerns that as a Cabinet department it would exert too much control over local schools.
However, starting in the 1950s public interest in education policy began to rise again along with the civil rights movement and the effort to end segregation. Segregated black schools in the South were woefully inadequate, underfunded, and discriminatory and along with the national effort to end segregation the nation made an effort to raise the general level of education for all students regardless of race.
In 1980, backed by the National Education Association, Congress passed, and President Jimmy Carter signed, the Department of Education Organization Act, making it a stand-alone Cabinet department again.
Project 2025 has a less benign view of the department’s creation. In its version, advocates of expanded education funding didn’t like the existing scattershot approach to education because “a single, captive agency would allow them to promote their agenda more effectively across Administrations. Eventually, the National Education Association made a deal and backed the right presidential candidate— Jimmy Carter—who successfully lobbied for and delivered the Cabinet-level agency.”
(Today, Project 2025 recommends rescinding the National Education Association’s congressional charter because it views it as “a demonstrably radical special interest group that overwhelmingly supports left-of-center policies and policymakers.”)
Ever since its establishment, Republicans have made ED a target and pledged to eliminate it. President Ronald Reagan, who took office immediately after Carter, was bent on ending it but the person he tapped to do the deed, Secretary of Education Terrel Bell, instead formed a commission that issued a report, A Nation at Risk, proposing reforms. Reagan liked the report so much he claimed it as his own and the department was saved, changing its focus to raising the quality of public education.
Ever since then abolishing the Department of Education has become part of the Republican mantra, an essential article of faith about which nothing has been done in actuality.
In 2016, during a campaign speech in—of course, Florida—then-candidate Donald Trump said “there is so much waste” at the department that he planned to cut it down to “shreds.”
When he became president he appointed Betsy DeVos to be secretary of the despised agency. Whatever else she did as secretary, she did not abolish the department—and as president, neither did he.
And so it stands today, a target of Project 2025.
Breaking the big bank
The US Department of Education has been described as “a big bank with a small policy shop attached.”
It’s an apt description. For all the rhetoric and misconceptions to the contrary, ED’s primary role is administering grants and financial aid to school systems and students around the country. While it tries to maintain and raise academic standards and eliminate educational inequities in school systems, it largely does this through the finances it administers.
Project 2025 would end the federal role in supporting education financially.
“To the extent that federal taxpayer dollars are used to fund education programs, those funds should be block granted to states without strings, eliminating the need for many federal and state bureaucrats,” it states. “Eventually, policymaking and funding should take place at the state and local level, closest to the affected families.”
Currently, federal funding can be a big boost to the school districts that receive it.
Collier County, Fla., illustrates this. In its tentative 2024-25 budget released on July 31, the Collier County School District estimated it would receive $7,243,150 in direct federal funding. Not all of this will come from ED; other federal agencies like the Department of Agriculture, which administers nutritional programs, also provide funding. However, it is a good indicator of the kind of federal support that primary and secondary school districts receive.
That’s not the only federal money Collier County receives. It also receives federal money passed on through state agencies and that’s much greater: $79,023,516. (Impressive as these figures might be, the vast majority of the district’s funding comes from local taxation: over $842 million.)
The funding goes for everything from salaries, to supplies, to services to furniture and more.
Breakdown of special, non-tax revenues and expenditures for Collier County Public Schools. (CCPS)
Below, where the money goes: Collier County grant recipients, amounts and officials overseeing the programs for the 2024-25 budget year. This includes grants from non-government, non-profit and philanthropic sources. (CCPS)
(Perhaps surprisingly, the federal Department has no local influence on curricula, which is entirely formulated at the local level.)
So assuming that Project 2025 was implemented as proposed and ED was terminated, the very first thing that would happen in Collier County is the school system would stand to lose up to $86 million in federal funding, whether directly or through the state.
It might make that money back, if the state—which would now have total control over all non-local educational funding—decided to be generous or at least maintain current funding levels.
The omens for this, however, are not favorable because DeSantis, i.e., the state, has a propensity and a preference for cutting appropriations for educational institutions.
A glaring illustration of this occurred in the 2025 state budget when DeSantis vetoed $98 million in higher education funding. Florida Gulf Coast University, the local institution of higher learning, had $16.3 million excised from appropriations the legislature had otherwise approved.
Collier County public schools were not spared either: $2 million in approved appropriations were cut from its pilot education program for pre-kindergarten children.
Collier lost 1,000 seats as a result of the pandemic and needed to ready young children from all backgrounds for kindergarten. The money would have been used for 10 new modular pre-kindergarten classrooms and modification of existing facilities so that 160 more 3 and 4 year olds and their parents could participate in school programs near their homes and elementary schools. Educators hoped it would establish strong bonds between the families and schools and prepare the children to enter the classroom. It would also train parents—from very diverse backgrounds, languages and cultures—to be school-ready, teach their children early literacy and prepare the children for schoolrooms.
The fact that the budget request was made by no less a personage than state Sen. Kathleen Passidomo (R-28-Naples), president of the Florida Senate, made no difference to DeSantis at all.
So on a practical level, terminating the Department of Education would at the very least inject great uncertainty into Collier County public schools’ cash flow. At worst it could result in a serious loss of revenue that would affect all aspects of school operations, resulting in a potentially significant reduction of capability and resources that would negatively affect students, teachers and staff. Furthermore, it would do this in a county that is rapidly growing and needs new school facilities and resources to handle the influx.
If Project 2025 were implemented these kinds of losses would apply across the country as all school districts lost federal funding.
Project 2025’s recommendation that money be provided to states “without strings” is also dangerous. The reason there are “strings” on federal money now is to ensure that the funds are used for their intended purpose and not misappropriated or diverted into private pockets. Project 2025 hates the “many federal and state bureaucrats” currently administering and overseeing federal education funds. However, the reason they’re there is to ensure that the money is spent properly. Without them there would be no oversight, regulation or enforcement.
Florida has already seen the fruits of this. The DeSantis “war on woke” in academia has also been a gold rush for favored politicians taking over academic positions for ideological reasons.
Under Project 2025’s proposals, the removal of “strings” on federal funding would no doubt open the floodgates for a season of unrestrained corruption and turn ivory towers into feeding troughs.
Analysis: Going back?
More broadly than just money, Project 2025’s measures would subvert the entire educational effort of the past 70 years to make American quality education more expansive, equitable and accessible to everyone. After all, it was an educational case, Brown vs. Board of Education that ended legal segregation in the first place.
Eliminating the department “would shutter thousands of public schools, end supports for low-income students, divert taxpayer funds to the private education of wealthy students and, ultimately, destabilize public education altogether,” argues Lily Klam, director of education policy at the First Focus on Children advocacy group.
The reason that the federal government intervened in education in the first place was because the racial and economic disparities among different school systems, especially in the segregated South, were so great that only the federal government was capable of correcting them. Then, starting in the Reagan administration, it sought to improve public education’s quality and outcomes.
These have been the thrust of federal efforts, as embodied in the Department of Education, since its founding. It is premised on the idea that a uniformly educated, literate, thinking population benefits the nation, is essential for democracy, and makes the country stronger.
This is the notion that Project 2025 is challenging. Project 2025—and the whole anti-public education movement—whether consciously or not, would bring back the past disparities in education and make education uneven and uncertain. By undermining public education and putting the states entirely in charge, it would revive past abuses and disparities.
Ultimately, wrecking public education, as Project 2025 seeks, would lead, not just to racial inequalities, but to socio-economic and political ones as well. While the entire movement of American education since independence has been to make Americans more prosperous, educated and equal as citizens, Project 2025 would make them less prosperous, less educated and less equal. It would ultimately create an undemocratic class of literate masters ruling ignorant serfs.
When it comes to education, this is the “again” in the slogan “make America great again.”
And preventing this outcome is the “back” in the slogan “we won’t go back.”
This article is one of a series looking at the impact of Project 2025 on Southwest Florida and the nation. Others are:
The men of the Board of County Commissioners of Lee County, Fla. From the left: Chair Mike Greenwell (R-District 5), Brian Hamman (R-District 4), Cecil Pendergrass (R-District 2), Ray Sandelli (R-District 3) and Kevin Ruane (R-District 1). (Photo: BOCC)
Aug. 28, 2024 by David Silverberg with reporting by Dan Becker
Updated at 11:15 am with link to full agenda.
The Board of County Commissioners of Lee County, Fla., will be considering a resolution condemning Amendment 4 at its next meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 3.
Amendment 4 is a proposed constitutional amendment to the Florida Constitution that guarantees a woman’s right to choose abortion. It will be subject to a statewide vote in the general election on Nov. 5.
“WHEREAS, the Board believes that the language of the proposed amendment is vague, deceptive, and overbroad and would strike already enacted protections instituted by the State of Florida by broadening the definition of healthcare providers to those not medically licensed, and allowing the life of the unborn to be taken right up to the moment of birth; and,
“WHEREAS, the Board believes that the passage of Amendment 4 would be detrimental to the health, safety, and welfare of the citizens of Lee County and the State of Florida.
“NOW THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THAT THE BOARD OF COUNTY COMMISSIONERS OF LEE COUNTY, FLORIDA, expresses its strong opposition to Amendment 4.”
(The full text of the proposed resolution can be read at the end of this article.)
If passed, the Lee County Board would be joining neighboring Collier County’s Board in opposing Amendment 4. The Collier resolution, passed June 11, expressed the opinion of Commissioner Chris Hall (R-District 2).
To register an opinion on the proposed resolution, residents who sign up in person the day of the meeting can speak before the Board for 3 minutes. The Commission meeting on Tuesday, Sept. 3 is scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m. at the Old Lee County Courthouse, 2120 Main St., downtown Fort Myers, Fla.
To contact Lee County commissioners:
All commissioners can be contacted by mail at P.O. Box 398, Fort Myers, FL 33902-0398
Kelly Mason, chair of the Collier County School Board, displays a flyer from the county Republican Executive Committee accusing schools of ‘indoctrination’ at the Aug. 21 meeting of the Board. (Image: CCPS)
Aug. 26, 2024 by David Silverberg
Has the Make America Great Again (MAGA) fever broken?
That certainly seems to be the case in Collier County, Fla., a very conservative, very Republican, extremely Trumpist corner of the Sunshine State.
It’s too soon to say that where Collier County goes, so goes the nation. But last Tuesday, Aug. 20, Republican voters’ weariness and disgust led them to defeat the candidates endorsed by a Collier County Republican Executive Committee (CCREC, referred to here as REC) that they regarded as having grown increasingly authoritarian.
It seems to show that even in this Trumpist stronghold, MAGA madness has reached its limits.
It also seems that the majority of Americans have had enough—enough of MAGAism and Donald Trumpism.
Both Collier County’s revolt, a statewide repudiation of candidates endorsed by Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) and a national wave of enthusiasm for Vice President Kamala Harris and Gov. Tim Walz (D) appear driven by the same things: weariness, disgust, outrage and now, a determination to do something about it. Americans have been living with Donald Trump’s “hatred, prejudice and rage” and they’re clearly ready to move on.
But to see it erupt among Collier County Republicans is truly a revelation.
The rebirth of joy
The national shift in public attitudes was best put by Walz, when he was introduced as Vice President Kamala Harris’ vice presidential running mate on Aug. 6 in Philadelphia.
“Thank you, Madam Vice President, for the trust you put in me,” he said. “But, maybe more so, thank you for bringing back the joy.”
Joy. That’s not a word that has been used at all in American politics since 2015. Clearly, it’s something Americans like and it’s what’s giving the Harris campaign the giddy momentum it’s enjoying in the race for the White House.
The four-year presidential election cycle not only marks political eras but emotional ones as well, with leading political personalities shaping the behavior and attitudes of the public.
That was certainly true in Florida. From 2016 to 2020 during Trump’s presidency, aspiring Republican politicians aped his attitudes and behavior both in campaigning and governing.
“There are individuals who fire this thing up and the biggest one of all, I think, is Donald Trump,” observed Francis Rooney, the former ambassador and congressman for Southwest Florida, at a panel to Reduce the Rancor, this year. “He exerts a magnetic influence over an awful lot of Republicans.”
The COVID-19 pandemic, which broke out in 2020, also had a profound impact on public attitudes. With Trump at first dismissing the danger and then fighting the experts and scientists who were trying to protect the public, his denigration of expertise, knowledge and competence leached down to the grassroots.
Trump’s attitudes really took root in Florida, his adopted state.
In 2018 Ron DeSantis, a former congressman, had his primary bid for the governorship supercharged by Trump’s endorsement. He won and as governor pursued Trumplike policies. It worked for him; in 2022 he was re-elected to the governorship with a decisive 20 point majority.
Starting in 2023, though, DeSantis tried to out-Trump Trump in his own bid for the White House. He launched a comprehensive “anti-woke” crusade in every aspect of Florida culture and society, hoping to ride it nationally to the presidency and “make America, Florida,” to use his own slogan. In this he was aided by a completely subservient Republican super-majority in the state legislature that raced to the rim of reason in devising ever more radical measures both to curry favor with him and pander to their most extreme constituents.
Ultimately, it didn’t work. Trump treated DeSantis as a traitor, belittled and insulted him and put an end to his presidential candidacy before it even got to the state primaries. But the legacy of DeSantis’ anti-woke war and Trump’s dominance in the state lingers on in its politics.
With Harris at the top of the national Democratic ticket and a pro-choice state constitutional amendment on the November ballot that seems to have mobilized the state’s pro-choice voters, Florida Democrats now sense a chance to turn Florida from seemingly overwhelmingly Republican to Democratic.
“Ron DeSantis has lost his culture war,” said Nichole “Nikki” Fried, the state Democratic chair after Tuesday’s primary results. “What we saw last night is that Floridians across the state are tired of the divisiveness. They are tired of the culture wars.”
“Floridians are tired of extremism, and we’re ready to bring back some sanity, integrity, decency and true public servants,” agreed Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, the Democratic candidate for Senate.
Not everyone is sanguine about flipping the state. As political operative and Lincoln Project co-founder Rick Wilson put it in an Aug. 8 blog post: “I’m not saying Florida is in play. I’m not saying Florida is in play. I’m not saying Florida is in play. I’m not saying Florida is in play. I’m not saying Florida is in play. I’m not saying Florida is in play. But maybe you could see a sliver of a tiny edge of a glimmer on the horizon of Florida being in play, given the abortion rights and recreational weed ballot initiatives and a souring MAGA base.”
The case of Collier County, Fla.
This year Collier County Republicans rose in revolt against the official MAGA leadership of their Republican Party in the REC. It was a quiet revolt. There were no barricades in the streets. No one got shot. It happened in voting booths.
First, in the City of Naples on March 19, Republican voters defeated the REC-endorsed candidate for mayor, Ted Blankenship, who came in last in a three-way race.
Then, in the county at large, Republican voters defeated a whole slate of REC-endorsed candidates with the exception of one. With only a 25 percent turnout of the county electorate, it could hardly be said to be a wave. But make no mistake: it was a complete repudiation of MAGA directives and domination.
It needs to be emphasized just how remarkable this repudiation is because until now, Collier County has been dominated by its own mini-Trump and the dynamics of the electorate’s relationship to him reflects in microcosm the nation’s larger relationship to Donald Trump.
First gaining notoriety with his 2020 denunciation of George Floyd on Facebook, which brought accusations of racism, Oakes really rose to prominence in fighting public health measures and denouncing vaccines during the COVID pandemic. He gained fame among anti-vaccine and anti-mask activists, defied county health regulations and authorities and using his newly-opened store, Seed to Table, as a platform, began shaping local politics to his liking, which meant promoting the most extreme, Trumpist, MAGA candidates and policies.
The parallels between Oakes and Trump are truly striking. Both are businessmen and entrepreneurs. Indeed, it can be argued that Oakes at this point is more successful than Trump because his businesses, while suffering setbacks, are not mired in anything like the debt, litigation and criminal prosecution that face Trump’s.
Both men are loud, outspoken, mercurial, unpredictable, rebellious, litigious, bullying, insulting and petty. Both are extreme in their beliefs and language. Both have been accused of racism. Both have flirted with political violence. Both indulge in bizarre conspiracy theories. Both value fanatical loyalty over competence. Both cultivated an adoring personal following. Both are active politically, endorsing and boosting candidates who share their beliefs. Both verbally attacked scientific findings and public health officials during the COVID pandemic. Both denied the results of the 2020 election. Both were present in Washington, DC on Jan. 6, 2021. Both praised the rioters who attacked the Capitol. Both have been accused of lawbreaking: Trump has been convicted of 34 felonies; Oakes was issued citations for non-compliance with county regulations but never paid any penalties when Gov. Ron DeSantis (R) issued an executive order cancelling fines and pardoning violations of local COVID-related regulations.
And Oakes worships Trump. “I love our president and his family with every bit of my being!” Oakes posted on Facebook after a phone call with the then-President in December 2020. “I love all that he has given for our country and all that he stands for!”
Oakes was elected a state committeeman on the REC in 2020, which gave him an official Republican Party platform for his beliefs. He founded Citizens Awake Now Political Action Committee (CANPAC) to support candidates he favored.
It was effective. In the 2022 elections he won with a full house: he ousted a commissioner who voted for mask mandates against his wishes and two of his candidates won seats on the Collier County Board of Commissioners, giving it a MAGA majority. Three of his endorsed candidates won seats on the School Board of Collier County.
The victories paid off with governing successes at the county level: ordinances to exempt the county from federal law, to prevent future mask mandates or vaccine requirements (a duplication of state law), a resolution denouncing public health measures, a resolution opposing Amendment 4 to the state constitution guaranteeing reproductive rights, and termination of fluoridation of the county’s water.
While these measures had the willing support of Oakes’ MAGA followers, there was occasional defiance and that defiance was met with the full arsenal of litigation, denunciation, insult and rage.
When Kelly Mason (formerly Lichter), the Oakes-backed chair of the School Board, cast the deciding vote for a superintendent candidate against Oakes’ wishes, he denounced her as a “traitor.”
Then, this year, Oakes and his REC again backed a slate of candidates. These included a candidate for Board of Commissioners who would have ousted the incumbent Commissioner Burt Saunders (R-District 3), two school board candidates, and candidates for supervisor of elections and property appraiser. Oakes himself intended to run to keep his seat as Republican state committeeman but failed to file his paperwork on time and was disqualified.
It needs to be emphasized how unusual it is to have a county Republican Party endorse primary candidates. Most normal local parties—regardless of their partisan labels—are careful never to choose among competing local candidates; indeed, Party rules forbid it. But Collier County’s REC has ignored that.
What is more, Oakes and the REC employed a full arsenal of Trumpist weapons against what it perceived, not merely as fellow Republicans it opposed, but as full-blown enemies. These people, all Republicans of long standing and often very conservative, were blasted as Republicans in Name Only (RINOs) or—more terrible—as Democrats.
But even more galling to non-MAGA Republicans was the REC’s imperiousness in simply ordering Party members how to vote and employing what they regarded as lies and threats to get its way. In this it closely imitated Trump’s own wild and unfounded accusations against his perceived enemies. There was an actual threat of bringing criminal prosecution against the Collier County Citizens Value Political Action Committee (CCCVPAC), an independent Republican organization, for daring to defy the REC and endorse its own slate of candidates.
In assessing the results of the primary election for the county supervisor of elections race, Oakes himself posted on Facebook that, “The reason we lost EVERY single [Supervisor of Elections] race in the state of Florida is because our party will not unify.”
He concluded (as posted): “I pray that ALL of you learn from this and unite behind our party in the future should our father God even allows us to keep this Constitutional Republic in place after this election.”
(The Paradise Progressive reached out to Oakes for comment on this story but had not received a response as of posting time.)
School Board controversy
The most recent example of someone standing up against false REC accusations came the day after the election, last Wednesday, Aug. 21, at a meeting of the Collier County School Board.
Kelly Mason, the Board chair, complained that an REC-issued campaign flyer had accused the School Board of “indoctrinating” students.
The printed flyer from the REC included a quote from John Meo, the REC chair, accusing the School Board of indoctrinating students with believing the media, supporting President Joe Biden and advocating Communism and endorsing two opponents to incumbent School Board members.
The REC flyer (front and back) referenced by Kelly Mason. The two candidates listed both lost their races for the School Board in the Aug. 20 primary election. (Flyer: CCREC)
Mason challenged two members of the Board, Tim Moshier (District-5) and Jerry Rutherford (District-1), both of whom are members of the REC, to provide specific examples of student “indoctrination.”
“I think it’s an opportunity, with this indoctrination that’s going on that we need to be aware of, that the superintendent needs to be aware of, and we can address this head-on,” she said. “So, can you please provide the Board with the examples that this has been going on? And then after tonight I would like to be done with this conversation.”
Moshier fumblingly mentioned that there had been “a couple of little issues” and then an incident, which he could only vaguely recall, of a sticker in a classroom (there had been extensive controversy over “safe space” stickers in Florida classrooms in the past two years). A supposedly offensive image on the School Board website that he mentioned turned out to be a Planned Parenthood image entirely unrelated to Collier County that was used in local campaign propaganda.
Rutherford, for his part, wasn’t even capable of turning on the microphone on his desk. He did not provide any examples of “indoctrination.”
At the end of the discussion Mason said: “Since November ’22, we all got here at the same time, this [indoctrination] is not happening. So, I’m asking you tonight and Mr. Moshier, what examples [do we have] that this is going on because we need to address it—and it sounds like it’s not happening. Is that correct?”
Moshier replied: “I don’t know whether it is or not.”
The dialogue highlighted, not only the MAGA REC’s use of reckless and unsupported accusations and falsehoods but also the incompetence, incapability and inexperience of REC-endorsed candidates.
The only criteria for a REC/Oakes endorsement has been fanatical MAGAism and personal loyalty and obedience to the REC; not qualifications, experience or education.
As Oakes himself put it at his Patriot Fest rally on March 19, 2022: “I don’t want to hear about what IQ someone has or what level of education someone has,” when it comes to candidate qualifications. “Common sense and some back is all we need right now.” As he also said before the Board of Commissioners on Feb. 13 in regard to science-based public health measures: “We don’t trust the white coats anymore.”
The result has been the election of glaringly unprepared and incapable people to county bodies. When this was going to be extended to technical positions affecting the operations of the county—the Supervisor of Elections and the Property Appraiser—even the most loyal Republicans had enough. Michael Lyster, endorsement chairman of CCCVPAC called the REC-endorsed candidates “angry, inexperienced individuals.”
This valuing of fanaticism over competence is a feature of Trumpism at the national level. It was an aspect of Trump’s term as president and it is an aspect of Project 2025, which is building a database of obedient loyalists to take on the nation’s most sensitive positions regardless of their qualifications, preparation or expertise—or lack thereof.
A tropical tremor
As this is written, there are 71 days to Election Day, Nov. 5. That’s an eternity in politics and a lot can happen that could change the entire political equation.
But what can be said with some certainty is that at the moment, Harris and Walz seem to be riding a wave of joy and enthusiasm that looks like it will carry them to the nation’s highest offices.
What’s also clear is that they’ve broken through the dark menace of what Trump in his 2017 inaugural address called “American carnage.” Americans are tired of that carnage and being threatened, lied to and intimidated.
And the depth of that weariness can be seen in Collier County where Republicans were fed up with being bullied and battered by their own leadership, which seemed to have ridden off the rails of normal political dialogue and entered a delusional world of dictates, threats and insults.
Collier County is a little place. What happens here usually stays here.
But sometimes, just sometimes, political tremors very far down in small, obscure crevices can join with other tremors and rise high enough to cause earthquakes— and those earthquakes can change everything at the surface.
The audience at the Lee County Board of Commissioners meeting on Aug. 20, during a ceremony honoring county employees. (Image: LCBC)
Aug. 22, 2024 by David Silverberg with reporting by Dan Becker
The Lee County Board of Commissioners chose not to take any action on a proposed resolution opposing Amendment 4 at its meeting on Tuesday, Aug. 20.
Amendment 4 is a ballot initiative that would amend the Florida state Constitution to prevent government interference on abortion decisions. It is up for a vote in the general election on Nov. 5.
At its previous Aug. 6 meeting, Board Chair Mike Greenwell (R-District 5) instructed county staff to study and research neighboring Collier County’s anti-Amendment 4 resolution and return with their findings. A report was not made at this meeting.
Although the resolution was not considered, activists on both sides of the debate presented arguments to commissioners. About 20 people testified for a resolution and 10 testified against it.
Arguments for passage of a resolution largely ran along religious lines. One example was made by Lee County resident Aaron Gardner.
“I stand again before you this morning exhorting you to speak against this vague and deceitful George Soros-funded Marxist amendment by voting in favor of the proposed resolution,” he said.
Aaron Gardner (Image: LCBC)
Kathy Mayo, president of the local chapter of the National Organization for Women, spoke out against passing a resolution.
Recounting that as she entered the building she had been approached by a man who told her she was going to Hell because of her beliefs, Mayo warned the commissioners against getting involved in such an emotional issue.
Kathy Mayo (Image: LCBC)
“Many people want you to help influence this citizen-initiated ballot issue by passing a resolution to oppose Amendment 4,” she told the commissioners. “This is not your role. It may be tempting to step into the process but the Commission should neither endorse nor participate in any effort that undermines the democratic process. Your role is important and today is a great example; we saw the range of responsibilities of agencies that you have responsibility for funding for making sure that those services work but making a decision about abortion is not one of your roles. Please do not jump into this issue and do not contribute to politicizing a citizen-initiated ballot.”
Lisa Nagy, a former registered nurse and sexual assault nurse examiner, said she had seen a great deal of misinformation disseminated about Amendment 4.
Lisa Nagy (Image: LCBC)
“I’ve heard a lot about trafficking is going to increase and rapists are going to flock to our state,” she said. “This amendment does nothing [and] has nothing to do with anything about that. We just had abortion legal in this state a couple of years ago, up to 24 weeks, [and] we didn’t have a rapists flocking to our state two years ago.”
Passing an anti-Amendment 4 resolution would just spread more disinformation, she argued, saying “this just should be a vote by the people. This is an amendment by the people, for the people, for us to vote on and I ask you not to make a resolution, not to weigh in and please do not spread any more misinformation.”
A resolution may be introduced and considered at a future Board meeting. Meetings are scheduled for the first and third Tuesdays of each month: Sept. 3 and 17; Oct. 1 and 15; and a meeting is scheduled for Election Day, Nov. 5.
Lee County Supervisor of Elections Tommy Doyle. (Image: LCSoE)
Aug. 21, 2024 by David Silverberg
Updated Aug. 23 with judicial results.
Despite a last-minute breaking scandal, Lee County Supervisor of Elections Tommy Doyle kept his seat in yesterday’s Republican primary, winning by 80.4 percent (82,134 votes) over his opponent, Michael Peters who garnered 19.6 percent (10,619 votes).
Doyle was accused of having a romantic affair with an employee five years ago, which came to light last Thursday, Aug. 15, when early and mail-in voting was already under way. The employee, although making a complaint to the Equal Opportunity Employment Commission had rescinded the complaint, saying the affair was consensual.
“I am very embarrassed by a terrible decision I made five years ago which has hurt my wife deeply. This was the worst decision of my life and something I greatly regret. My wife and I working through this together and through the grace of God, we are healing as a family.
“I apologize to the wonderful staff within the Supervisor’s of Elections office and my constituents of Lee County, I acted outside my moral integrity. This was the worst decision of my life. I take full responsibility for my behavior and I can only ask for your forgiveness. I want to assure voters that this will not affect the Supervisor Office’s ability to conduct secure and accurate elections in our upcoming primary and general election.”
Regardless of the scandal, Lee County voters approved Doyle for a third term as Supervisor of Elections. His opponent, Peters, had expressed suspicion of election procedures and results and promised on his website to “make elections great again.”
Other results
Turnout in Lee County came to 23 percent of the electorate, according to statistics issued by the Lee County Elections office.
Sen. Rick Scott, the sitting Republican US senator, gained the nomination of his Lee County party members with a decisive 84.7 percent of the vote. In the Democratic primary, Debbie Mucarsel-Powell won the approval of 73.9 percent of county Democrats to challenge Scott in the general election in November.
In the primary for the Democratic nomination in Congressional District 17, Manny Lopez barely edged out Matthew Montavon by a mere 57 votes, or 50.6 percent to 49.4 percent. Lopez will now challenge incumbent Rep. Greg Steube in the general election.
In the Republican race for District 3 in the Board of County Commissioners, David Mulicka defeated Matthew Thornton by 62.3 percent to 35.7 percent.
In the Republican race for District 5 in the Board of County Commissioners, Mike Greenwell defeated Amanda Cochran by 55.3 percent to 44.7 percent.
In the race for Circuit Judge of the 20th Judicial Circuit Group 6, challenger Tracy Redd eased past incumbent Erik Leontiev by 55.6 percent to 44.4 percent in Lee County. Ultimately, Leontiev lost to Tracey Redd in the five-county 20th Judicial Circuit, Group 6, getting 48 percent of the vote to Redd’s 52 percent.
In the race for Circuit Judge of the 20th Circuit Group 28, incumbent Elizabeth Krier beat challenger Michael Colombo by 2,328 votes or 51.2 percent to 48.8 percent and winning the five-county circuit race by 53.4 percent of the vote.
In School Board races, Melisa Giovannelli defeated Carol Frantz in District 2, 56.7 percent to 43.3 percent.
In District 3, Bill Ribble barely squeaked past Kaitlyn Schoeffel by 187 votes, 50.4 percent to 49.6 percent.
In District 7, Vanessa Chaviano won with 47.1 percent of the vote, with Sheridan Chester getting 31.4 percent and Joshua Molandes, 21.5 percent.
Campaign workers outside the Collier County Public Library headquarters in Naples today. All the candidates named on the signs lost their races. (Photo: Author)
Aug. 21, 2024 by David Silverberg
Updated 5:50 pm with Johnny Fratto information.Updated Aug. 23 with judicial results.
In a nearly complete rout, Make America Great Again (MAGA) Republican candidates endorsed by the Collier County Republican Executive Committee (CCREC, referred to here as the REC) were defeated in yesterday’s primary election.
Overall voter turnout was 24.9 percent with only 64,465 ballots cast out of a pool of 258,528 eligible voters.
Because this was a closed primary and the county is overwhelmingly Republican, the local Republican primaries effectively counted as the election.
In major local races Melissa Blazier, current county Supervisor of Elections, kept her seat, winning with 48.5 percent of the vote, or 20,726 votes. David Schaffel, who was backed by the REC and Oakes, followed with 34.8 percent, or 14,881 votes and Tim Geurrette, a retired law enforcement officer, came in third with 16.8 percent or 7,165 votes.
As of 11:00 pm Vickie Downs led the race to keep her seat as Property Appraiser by a mere 389 votes, or 43.7 percent over her nearest rival, Jim Molenaar, with 42.7 percent. Molenaar was backed by the REC and Oakes.
In the race for Republican State Committeeman, Douglas Rankin, who was ousted by Oakes in 2020, made a comeback, winning back his position with 56.3 percent of the vote over his rival Frank Schwerin, with 43.7 percent. Oakes had intended to run for the seat but was disqualified when he failed to file his paperwork on time.
In Collier County District 3, Burt Saunders, the incumbent commissioner who had been targeted for ouster by MAGA Republicans, defeated three challengers, winning by 47.1 percent. His nearest rival, Frank Roberts gained only 29.3 percent.
Stephanie Lucarelli, the School Board member for District 2, won her race by 53.9 percent over challenger Pam Cunningham, with 46.1 percent.
Erick Carter, the other incumbent School Board member, also kept his seat by 56 percent over Tom Henning’s 44 percent.
In a race for Republican State Committeewoman, the Oakes-backed candidate Kristina Heuser was a rare MAGA success, winning with 52.6 percent of the vote over longtime conservative activist JoAnn DeBartolo with 47.4 percent.
In the hotly contested and bitter Republican battle for state House District 81, covering southern coastal Collier County, Yvette Benarroch edged out retired businessman and Marco Island councilman Greg Folley by 56.3 percent to 43.7 percent.
In the major statewide race, Sen. Rick Scott retained his party’s nomination over two challengers with a whopping 88.8 percent of Republican votes.
However, in the Democratic nominating race for US Senate, Debbie Mucarsel-Powell also won her race with an overwhelming 77.9 percent of the vote.
Mucarsel-Powell and Scott will face off in November.
In the race for the congressional District 26 Republican nomination, incumbent Republican Rep. Mario Diaz Balart maintained his dominance, winning with 73.2 percent of the vote. Johnny Fratto, who was endorsed by Oakes, came in a distant second at 16.5 percent.
Incumbent judge Elizabeth Krier in the 20th Judicial Circuit, Group 28 kept her seat with 53.4 percent of the vote. Judge Erik Leontiev, although winning in Collier County, ultimately lost to Tracey Redd in the five-county 20th Judicial Circuit, Group 6, getting 48 percent of the vote to Redd’s 52 percent.
The Lee County Board of Commissioners meeting on Aug. 6, 2024. (Image: LCBC)
Aug. 14 by David Silverberg
Anti-choice activists in Lee County, Fla., are urging county commissioners to pass a resolution opposing Amendment 4 in imitation of neighboring Collier County.
Amendment 4 would amend the Florida constitution to protect a woman’s right to an abortion. It is on the general election ballot, where it must pass with a 60 percent or more approval vote to become law.
Board Chair Mike Greenwell (R-District 5) instructed county staff to study and research the Collier resolution and return with their findings for the Board to consider at a later, unspecified, date.
Commissioner Mike Greenwell at the Aug.6 meeting. (Image: LCBC)
At the meeting over 20 public speakers called for passing an anti-Amendment 4 resolution, most citing religious reasons. Some called it “wicked,” “immoral,” “abhorrent” and “deceptive.”
Tara Jenner, vice chair of the Lee County Republican Party, called Amendment 4 “extreme and very poorly drafted” and reminded the commissioners that the Republican Party of Florida had taken a position against the amendment.
Tara Jenner at the Aug. 6 meeting. (Image: LCBC)
Tom Ascol, senior pastor at Grace Baptist Church in Cape Coral, said “it grieves me to see what leftists are doing to try to come in to steer our state into their horrific agenda.” He said that Amendment 4 was “something that is attempting to be done to Florida by people who don’t care about our way of life.”
Robert Roper, pastor of the First Baptist Church of Alva, after noting that the Board had passed a resolution recognizing that gopher tortoises were listed as a threatened species, urged: “Move this resolution off the table and on to the rolls of the other resolutions you passed, and be the voice of the unborn in Lee county and the state of Florida. It’s at least as important as a gopher turtle.”
There were no pro-Amendment 4 voices speaking at the meeting.
However, Dan Becker, a Lee County resident, denounced the potential resolution in a letter to the editor that ran in the Naples Daily News on Aug. 9, stating: “Our right to vote without government interference is once again under attack. Through intimidation and misinformation a fringe group of extremists are attempting to force the Lee County Board of Commissioners to pass a proclamation that opposes State Amendment to Limit Government Interference with Abortion—Amendment 4.” He added that commissioners’ duties “do not include support or decrying voter-initiated ballot measures. We will not go back!”
The Paradise Progressive asked all five commissioners if they planned on introducing a resolution at the Aug. 20 meeting. No response had been received from any of them as of post time.
An official video of the entire 3-hour, 20-minute meeting with a transcript, posted by the Board, can be seen on YouTube. Discussion of the resolution begins at 2:00 hours into the video.
Lee County residents can express an opinion on this matter by writing or calling their commissioners. As of this writing the agenda for the meeting had not yet been posted. Residents who sign up in person the day of the meeting can speak before the Board for 3 minutes. The Commission meeting on Aug. 20 is scheduled to begin at 9:30 a.m. at the Old Lee County Courthouse, 2120 Main St., downtown Fort Myers, Fla.
To contact Lee County commissioners:
All commissioners can be contacted by mail at P.O. Box 398, Fort Myers, FL 33902-0398
One of the media’s most important roles in American democracy is evaluating candidates for public office and presenting the facts to voters.
But beyond just the facts, the media should play a clearly defined role in endorsing those candidates judged the most qualified.
An endorsement is not a command; it is a suggestion to voters. But it should be an informed suggestion based on research and experience.
Regrettably, in Southwest Florida some of the most established media platforms no longer endorse. They shy away from or ignore this vital function.
But nature abhors a vacuum. In communities large and small, citizen journalists have stepped in to provide the news and insight for voters to make informed, considered decisions on whom they want to govern and represent them.
It is in that spirit that The Paradise Progressive is making these endorsements.
While The Paradise Progressive concentrates most of its local coverage on Collier County, it also covers the actions of members of Congress from the 17th and 19th congressional districts, both of which include Lee County.
Accordingly, what follow are endorsements for contested primary elections in Lee County and Fort Myers.
There is no endorsement for a Republican nominee. The incumbent, Sen. Rick Scott, has repeatedly demonstrated egregious incompetence in ways that harmed the state and people he represents. He has also called for sunsetting the Social Security, Medicare and Medicaid programs on which many Southwest Floridians depend.
Debbie Mucarsel-Powell is a committed, articulate, energetic activist who has served in the US House of Representatives. She can be expected to do an outstanding job representing Florida and all its citizens in the US Senate.
It’s tough to make an endorsement when there are two committed candidates who both mean well, seek to serve the public and share many of the same positions on the issues.
However, Matthew Montavan’s academic credentials, his government experience, his longstanding promotion of good governance, his community commitment, his Peace Corps service and his long career with the United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization, mark him as an outstanding candidate.
He knows government and how it functions. There will be no learning curve when he takes the oath of office.
Montavan will make an excellent representative for the people of the 17th District.
Lee County Supervisor of Elections
Endorsement: Tommy Doyle
Tommy Doyle has been serving as Lee County Supervisor of Elections since 2016. Since then election results have been unchallenged and the office has not faced allegations of impropriety, inaccuracy or illegality. Doyle should be re-elected to continue to do his job and Lee County voters will be able to have confidence in the reported results of their elections.
In contrast, as in Collier County, Doyle’s opponent is driven by unfounded suspicion and ideological motivations. Michael Peters calls for a return to hand-counted ballots, the end of computerized ballot tabulating systems and wants to “make elections great again”—whatever that means.
The judges (on all ballots)
Endorsements:
Erik Leontiev (20th Judicial Circuit, Group 6)
Elizabeth Krier (20th Judicial Circuit, Group 28)
It’s very difficult to render judgments on judges who are supposed to make objective, unbiased decisions based on the law on a case-by-case basis.
In this instance both sitting judges have records unblemished by accusations of ethical lapses or improper behavior. Nothing in their records indicates any unfitness for office or reasons for discontinuation of their service.
Krier briefly came into political prominence in Southwest Florida from 2020 to 2022 when she adjudicated a lawsuit brought by congressional candidate Casey Askar against Rep. Byron Donalds (R-19-Fla.). Askar charged that Donalds had defamed him but Krier ruled that he hadn’t done so with malice and Askar lost the case. Her ruling appeared sound and reasonable. (The full story and coverage of the ruling can be read at “The Donalds Dossier: Putin’s pal; an address mess; and a legal laurel—Updated.”)
Lee County School Board, District 3
Endorsement: Kaitlyn Schoeffel
Lee County will benefit from having Kaitlyn Schoeffel of Estero on its School Board. She wants to improve community communication with the school system and upgrade its use of technology. She’s concerned with school safety and having a “supportive and inclusive” school culture. She also promises to advocate for better pay, resources and support for teachers and staff.
Schoeffel has worked as a substitute teacher and dance instructor and has two children in the public school system. On her own initiative she created Operation Empowerment, an initiative to promote the arts to children—something that has taken on new importance with Gov. Ron DeSantis’ complete veto of arts funding in Florida.
These experiences and her commitment to improving Lee County public schools merit her election.
Fort Myers City Council Ward 2
Endorsement: Jacquelyn McMiller
Fort Myers is fortunate to have three committed and community-minded candidates seeking to serve on the city council in Ward 2.
However, Jacquelyn stands out for her community activism, her local focus and her knowledge of land use and housing issues. She’s also familiar with risk management, redevelopment and construction projects, all of critical interest to the City of Fort Myers.
Fort Myers City Council Ward 4
Endorsement: Cindy Banyai
Cindy Banyai is a committed political activist who wants “to create a Fort Myers where the sun shines on everyone!” as she puts it on her website.
Banyai has long been politically active in Southwest Florida, running twice for Congress in the 19th Congressional District. Having worked on projects in the City of Fort Myers she has seen how calls for change get pigeonholed and ignored, while public dollars go into private pockets.
“I’m here to say that corruption is not ‘just the way it is’ and I’m here to put a stop to it,” she vows.
Her election will be to the benefit of Fort Myers and all the people who call it home.
The Paradise Progressive 