Author Archives: Kartik Krishnaiyer
LEAD report, North Florida, “swing voters” and Latino/Hispanics
We’ve discussed time and again the comfort zone that many Democratic operatives and party insiders have with campaigning in North Florida. Days after the 2014 election debacle, many Democratic insiders were already pointing to Charlie Crist’s “under-performance” in North Florida as the cause of his defeat. Never mind that fact that Hispanics which represented 17% […]
LEAD Task Force report underwhelming and disappointing
It took over seven months of meetings and planning, but late last week the report from the Florida Democratic Party’s LEAD Task Force was released. The report is itself a combination of obvious conclusions and less obvious ones that are based on faulty assumptions. Quite frankly, the report and the entire work of the task […]
Flashback Friday: Florida’s first female member of Congress
Many political nuts do not know that William Jennings Bryan, one of the most significant politicians of the late 1800’s and early 1900’s relocated to the Miami area in the later part of his life. The three-time Democratic nominee moved the party towards economic populism and social conservatism. Bryan was the most feared man in […]
Will the Florida Democratic Party return to relevance?
Florida’s Democrats have had a brutal 15 months. Beginning with Alex Sink’s Special Election loss in March 2014, continuing through a disastrous Election Day in November 2014 and culminating in defeat last month in Jacksonville’s high-profile Mayor’s Race. Certainly not everything that has gone wrong can be blamed on the Florida Democratic Party (FDP) but […]
Ft Lauderdale Strikers update – Sponsorships, supporters, toxic atmosphere and staff changes
Time for us to check in on our friends with the Fort Lauderdale Strikers professional soccer club. The Strikers despite assembling a very impressive squad which is deeper and more talented than the one that reached last year’s NASL Soccer Bowl final, are sitting level on points at the bottom of the league table currently. […]
Flashback Friday: Florida’s first African-American member of Congress
Republican Josiah T. Walls was Florida’s first African-American Congressman, and a powerful symbol of the Reconstruction era in the state. Walls was born into slavery in Virginia and captured by the Union Army during the Peninsula Campaign. Eventually he was discharged in Florida after the Battle of Olustee and settled in the Gainesville area. Following […]
Democrats in Florida, being “progressive,” access and cash
Many Democrats in Florida like to believe they are on the right side of the issues. Public polling and basic compassion confirms that in fact the Democrats are right on the issues and that a majority of Floridians are ready to support Democrats that act like electorate would expect them to. With this in mind, […]
Patrick Murphy: Flavor of the month, or real staying power?
The handwriting was on the wall. Rep. Patrick Murphy at the ripe young age of 32 was going to be the Democratic nominee for US Senate in 2016 and when Jeff Atwater opted not to run he was going to be a US Senator. But politics turns on a dime and what seemed inevitable just […]
Broward Squeeze: Party officials meddling in House District 98 primary?
Rep. Katie Edwards (D-Plantation) is often talked about as a potential statewide candidate for the Democratic Party. Extremely popular among Democratic voters (but not necessarily among activists) in her district which is anchored around Plantation, Davie and Sunrise, she seems an unlikely official to be targeted by some in the local Democratic party. That’s why […]
Florida at the center of global FIFA scandal
Florida. Somehow we always get it wrong and cannot escape controversy. As the world watched on Wednesday the Department of Justice, FBI and Swiss authorities in coordination indicted and arrested some of the biggest figures in world football (soccer) on charges of racketeering, conspiracy and corruption. The heart of the scandal revolved around Miami, and […]
The Florida Squeeze 