It is with a heavy heart that I report the sudden passing of Jeff Wilkinson, Seminole County State Committeeman. Jeff was a valued member of the Seminole DEC and the Florida Democratic Party.
Jeff served our country in the United States Army and held various significant roles, including Seminole County DEC Chair, State Committeeman, and member of numerous FDP standing committees. He was also a dedicated member of the Veteran’s Caucus.
The Florida Democratic Party has lost a dear member and friend. I ask that you join me in keeping his family and friends in your thoughts and prayers.
Forward,
Nikki Fried
Chair
Florida Democratic Party
ELECTION DAY — TUESDAY, NOVEMBER 7
This Tuesday is election day in 16 counties across the state of Florida — including the special primary election in HD 35. If you have an election in your area, please use your social media accounts to drive GOTV efforts.
2024 Elections — One Year Out
Sunday, November 5th marked one year out from the 2024 elections.
TOPLINE: One year from now, Florida voters will head to the polls to reject Republican extremism and restore rights across the state.
- The 2024 elections are the first step in our ten-year plan to Take Back Florida.
- We have the chance to restore reproductive rights, push Rick Scott into retirement, and take back key seats to chip away at the supermajority in the Florida Legislature.
- Over the next year, Florida Democrats will join the Biden-Harris campaign in one of the most important organizing efforts since the Obama Campaign — working to elect Democrats in critical elections from school boards to the U.S. Senate.
TOPLINE: While Republicans fight amongst themselves, Democrats from across the country are converging on Miami to support Biden-Harris 2024.
- Governor J.B. Pritzker of Illinois will be joining FDP Chair Nikki Fried, Florida State Senator Shevrin Jones, and Biden-Harris 2024 campaign manager Julie Chávez Rodríguez for a pre-debate press conference in Miami on Tuesday.
- In addition to media efforts, DNC Chair Jamie Harrison will host a series of roundtables with the Hispanic, Black, Haitian and LGBTQ+ communities.
- None of the Republican presidential candidates — including Ron DeSantis — have any realistic plans to maintain the Biden Economic Recovery, reduce crime, protect rights, or address the climate crisis.
TOPLINE: More than a year out from the election, polls are not predictive.
- Most people are not tuned into the election now and won’t be for several months,
- Around this time in 2011, the New York Times openly mused whether Barack Obama was “toast,” and polls from this time showed him down in battleground states by large margins,
- Ronald Reagan, Bill Clinton, and Barack Obama all faced unfavorable poll numbers during their first terms before ultimately being reelected 18 months later,
- And let’s not forget the polling ahead of the 2022 midterms predicted a “red tsunami” that never materialized.
- No president running for reelection in modern history has had a stronger record of accomplishment to run on or a more popular set of policies than Joe Biden:
- Nearly 90% support a $35 monthly insulin cap,
- 83% support Medicare negotiations for lower prescription drug prices,
- 73% support the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law,
- 69% support the CHIPS Act,
- In battlegrounds: 76% support for the first major gun safety legislation passed in nearly 30 years,
- By a 2:1 margin, voters overwhelmingly support codifying Roe v. Wade.
- There’s no doubt this will be a very close election.
- Team Biden-Harris is ignoring the noise and building the strong campaign it needs to win – just like in 2020.
Last Week in FDP
- Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried issued a statement responding to the tragic shooting in Tampa.
- Over 1,000 Florida Democrats descended upon Orlando for the 2023 Take Back Florida State Convention. See the recap here.
- Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried issued a statement responding to Rick Scott’s endorsement of Trump.
- Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried and Congressman Darren Soto hosted a virtual press conference slamming Trump and MAGA Republicans head of the Republican Party of Florida’s so-called “Freedom Summit” in Kissimmee.
Goal by 2024: County Specific Voter Registration Plans
The FDP has a goal of developing county specific voter registration plans in partnership with each of our DEC Chairs and leadership teams. Our Voter Registration Director is taking meeting requests with each county to develop our plan for the ten months over the 2024 cycle. Please work with your DEC team to schedule a meeting using this link.
Voter Registration Legal Guidance & FAQ’s
REACH – UPDATE ON LEGAL GUIDANCE: Regarding the use of personal and organizational devices to register voters. We are glad to have worked out a policy to ensure we are empowering Democrats on the ground to register voters. Please see updated policy here.
Abortion Petition Update
A few days ago we learned that almost 500,000 petitions have been validated! This means we are at 55% of the necessary petitions validated. We must have ALL our petitions submitted to the state well before their February 1st deadline to ensure they are counted.
We are on track to collect the overall necessary petitions, but we need volunteers now more than ever.
To ensure we get out petitions on time, we’re doing an all call asking for everyone to do a mass push for collection between now and December 1st. We will do two more smaller pushes after, but the all call most important date is December 1st. We also will start focusing more on specific Congressional Districts in the upcoming weeks, but right now the focus needs to be on getting as many petitions as possible.
We’re encouraging all partners and volunteers to attend a webinar on Wednesday November 8th at 6 pm. We will be reviewing the Ohio election results and pushing everyone to GOTP (get out the petition!).
Attached is a graphic to promote this event. You can sign up here: flfree.link/push
We are so excited to visit the Panhandle for our #TakeBackFL Tour! We are thrilled to engage with voters in Santa Rosa, Escambia, Bay, and Jefferson counties! Sign up below to join us on tour!
Monday, November 13, 2023
11:00 AM Central – Take Back Santa Rosa | Sign Up
5:00 PM Central – Take Back Escambia| Sign Up
Tuesday, November 14, 2023
11:00 AM Central – Take Back Bay | Sign Up
4:00 PM EST- Take Back Jefferson | Sign Up
Voter Registration
URGENT CALL TO ACTION – Special Election HD 118!
We need all hands on deck for the next 48 hours!
We are calling unregistered voters to register them to vote so they can participate in the HD 118 Special Election on December 5, 2023. The deadline to register to vote for this election is Monday, Nov. 6. We have less than 48 hours! Do you have a couple of hours to spare today or tomorrow?
Please sign up now to start making calls
REACH Trainings
Reach Level 1 with the FL LGBTQ+ Democratic Caucus: Weds, Nov 8, 7pm EST
Reach Level 1 for Miami-Dade Clubs and Caucuses: Thurs, Nov. 9, 7pm EST
Reach Level 1 with Santa Rosa DEC: Weds, Nov 15, 6pm CTD
Voter Registration Program Goals by 2024
Looking for Reach Trainers
Would you like to join our FDP Reach Trainers Group? We are meeting every Friday during lunchtime to discuss the implementation and rollout of Reach throughout Florida in preparation for our full launch in 2024. Interested in joining? Email kris@floridadems.org to get plugged in.
1 Voter Registration Coordinator per County
In order to achieve our goal to reduce the voter registration gap by 35% in 2024, we need to work together. We are asking all DEC’s to appoint a Voter Registration Coordinator for your county.
This individual will work directly with our Voter Registration Director to execute the voter registration plan for their county. Please fill out the VAN Training Survey to let us know who your Voter Registration Coordinator will be.
1 Data Coordinator per County
We are working with the FL Data Director Council to form an integrated and unified data infrastructure and we need to ensure we have at least 1 Data Coordinator per county so that our DEC’s have the support they need with all things data. Please fill out the VAN Training Survey to let us know who your Data Coordinator(s) will be.
New Spanish Language Channels
Be sure to follow FDP on our newly launched Spanish language channels on social media. You can find Partido Demócrata de Florida on Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and Threads. Follow us at @PartidoDemFL!
Upcoming Events
Veterans Day Saturday, November 11th
