Weekly Talking Points
ECONOMY
TOPLINE: Florida’s Economy is lagging, while President Biden adds 199,000 jobs in November.
- Ron’s economic ‘solutions’ have been absolutely catastrophic for Floridians.
- The US economy added 199,000 jobs in November — bringing the total number of jobs created since President Biden took office to a record 14 million.
- Thanks to Ron’s failed leadership, Florida has largely been left out of President Biden’s economic recovery.
- Inflation is nearly twice the national average, car and property insurance prices are skyrocketing, and our cities are the least affordable they’ve ever been.
- While Ron is focused on his failing presidential campaign, President Biden and Florida Democrats are focused on making things better for Floridians.
ELECTION RECAP
TOPLINE: December 5th Elections net a win for Polk County Democrats, and a +30 swing in a state house seat in Miami.
- While we’re disappointed to lose the HD 118 election, the contrast between 2022 and now couldn’t be clearer.
- In 2022, Republicans carried HD 118 by 37 points — this year, we cut that margin to 6.
- Taking back Florida is a marathon, not a sprint.
- We’re proud of the work we’ve done this year to kick off that marathon, and we look forward to more opportunities in 2024 — starting with taking back House District 35.
CHRISTIAN ZIEGLER
On November 30th, the Florida Center for Government Accountability released a bombshell report revealing that Christian Ziegler, Chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, is currently under investigation for sexual battery. Sign and share our petition to demand Ziegler’s resignation immediately.
TOPLINE: Given the severity of the criminal allegations, the Florida Democratic Party has called for Christian Ziegler’s immediate resignation as Chairman of the Republican Party of Florida.
- Allegations of rape and sexual battery are severe and should be taken seriously.
- We applaud the accuser’s bravery in coming forward against a political figure as powerful as Christian Ziegler.
- We trust that the Sarasota Police Department will conduct a thorough investigation into these allegations of criminal behavior.
- Despite nearly every member of his party calling for his resignation, Christian Ziegler seems to have no plans to step down.
- Christian Ziegler can’t possibly continue to lead the Florida GOP under these conditions — he’s dragging the party down with him every day he stays in the job.
TOPLINE: As leaders of the GOP and Moms for Liberty, the Zieglers have spent years attacking anything they perceive as going against ‘family values’ – the hypocrisy is stunning.
- Christian and Bridget Ziegler have led the charge on attacking the LBGTQ+ community, targeting and harassing school board members, banning books and bathrooms, and eliminating conversations about gender and sexuality in schools.
- What happens behind closed doors is Christian and Bridget’s personal business, but it’s interesting that two people who are so obsessed with banning books about gay penguins might be engaged in a non-traditional sexual relationship.
- The Republican Party of Florida is in shambles. From Washington D.C. to Tallahassee, Republican leaders across the country have delivered nothing but chaos, and Floridians deserve better.
FLORIDA PRIMARY BALLOT PROCESS
At the 2023 Florida Democratic Party State Convention (Oct. 27-29), the State Executive Committee voted unanimously to place President Joe Biden on the ballot. No other candidates received a nomination.
TOPLINE: The Florida Democratic Party followed its process and the State Executive Committee voted unanimously to send one name, Joe Biden, to the Secretary of State as a candidate for the party’s nomination for president.
- The Florida Democratic Party followed its process, which was approved by the State Executive Committee.
- The process to be on the Florida ballot has been publicly available on our website. It clearly states that the Florida Democratic Party’s primary ballot is submitted to the Secretary of State by November 30, 2023.
- The State Executive Committee votes to place candidates on the presidential primary ballot at the Florida Democratic Party’s State Convention every four years.
- Dean Phillips and Marianne Williamson did not receive a nomination from our State Executive Committee, therefore, they are not on the ballot in Florida.
- It is not uncommon for an incumbent President to be declared the automatic winner of a presidential primary — this happened with President Obama in 2012.
- The Florida Democratic Party is not going to bend the rules for latecomers or undermine the will of our voters.
This past week, we had another round of elections across the state, where we saw Polk County Democrats win another seat, and Democrats in Miami-Dade swung a state House seat by 30 points!
As we march toward the end of the year and set our sights on electing Tom Keen to House District 35 on January 16, I’ve been reflecting on the following phrase:
“What a difference a year can make.”
Just think about it.
It was December of 2022. We just lost an election by 20 points.
One year later, Democrats up and down the state are over-performing. Now we have the opportunity to continue the momentum and elect Tom Keen – and send a Navy veteran and a man of service and integrity to the Florida State House.
Now, just imagine what we can accomplish one year from now.
Please be on the lookout for volunteer canvass, texting, and phone call opportunities.
It’s going to take all of us, but I know that with your help – we can take back Florida.
One team, one dream!
Forward,
Nikki Fried
Chair
Florida Democratic Party
Last Week in FDP
Chair Nikki Fried hosted a virtual press conference calling out the hypocrisy from GOP Chair Christian Ziegler with House Minority Leader Fentrice Driskell, Brevard School Board Member Jennifer Jenkins, Carlos Guillermo Smith, LGBTQ+ Caucus Chair Nathan Bruemmer, and Sarasota parent Jordan Leschert.
Chair Fried was in South Florida for a roundtable discussion with elected officials in Miami-Dade and Broward.
Chair Fried joined the Palm Beach DEC for their Holiday Party.
FDP 12 Days of Service – December 1-December 12
Democrats across the state have been hard at work giving back to their communities as part of our 12 Days of Service initiative. If you’ve been giving back to your community, please let us know so we can uplift your hard work on social media!
Municipal Election Wins in Polk County
Congratulations to the new city commissioner, Clifton E. Dollison, in Winter Haven and to the Polk County Democrats on their third municipal win this month!
FDP Priority: Abortion Ballot Initiative
We have until December 31, 2023 to collect petitions for the abortion ballot initiative! You can join the Floridians for Reproductive Freedom’s Neighbor to Neighbor program and start canvassing your neighborhood immediately!
Please work with your DEC to coordinate all canvassing activity for petition collection. With Reach, you’ll be able to type in your street name in the “Search” screen of the Reach App, and you will see all of the voters on your street. From there, you can canvass as you wish.
We encourage you to knock on the doors of Democrats, NPAs, and Republican Women.
Click here to review the step-by-step process and start collecting petitions in your neighborhood!
Click here to view the Organizing Dashboard outlining all of the progress made, areas of need, and resources straight from Floridians Protecting Freedom. This should help DEC’s in priority districts hone in on their work.
Voter Registration Program Updates
Unregistered Voter Data: We are preparing to provide unregistered voter data for all counties. This data will include, but not be limited to:
- Names
- Addresses
- Cell Phones
These are individuals who are not registered in Florida in all 67 counties with a specific overall partisanship score. See below and click here to look into a detailed report of L2’s National Models User Guide (Summer 2023).
- Timeline: We are working to have this data in VAN with an activist code for all DEC’s to use by January 1st, 2024 and will provide an update once it is available in VAN
- Guidance: We are developing a guidance document for everyone for these VAN targets.
- Questions: Please direct any questions regarding this data set to Kris, our Voter Registration Director: kris@floridadems.org
DNC’s Unregistered Households Data: The DNC is in the process of uploading this data into our VAN and we will share notice and guidance for when it is available in the next few weeks.
Field Team 6 Partnership: We are working with the Florida Data Directors Council to partner with Field Team 6. Field Team 6 is national organization helping states reach out to unregistered voters in key states including Florida. We will be partnering with them to augment our Voter Registration Program by providing phone banks and text banks with their unregistered voter data. We will also layer in our purchased data to maximize our efforts. Visit their website to learn more about them and their free services that they’ve been able to give other states to register voters: www.fieldteam6.org. We’re excited to start this work with them with Senate District 3.
HD 35 Days of Action
#TAKEBACKFL HD-35 Days of Action on 12/9, 12/10, 1/7 with Tom Keen and Carlos Guillermo Smith
Ready to flip Florida House District 35 and #TakeBackFL in 2024?
The #TeamTom and #TeamCarlos campaigns are joining forces to knock on doors in East Orlando and turnout voters for the Florida House District 35 Special Election happening January 16th, 2024!
No canvassing experience? No worries! Just dress comfortably and we’ll provide you with everything you need!