The US midterm elections take place Tuesday, November 6, 2018. This is my guide to voting in Brevard County, Florida.
If you’re not registered to vote in Florida, none of this will apply. Most of the candidates and all of the elections are statewide, so the guide partially covers all races in Florida.
Florida allows early voting and voting by mail. Out of 13 million registered voters, 2.6 million have already voted as of October 29.
Candidates
For all of these, it’s fine to vote a straight Democratic ticket.
Governor: Andrew Gillum (D)
Andrew Gillum, the mayor of Tallahassee, was the only non-millionaire running in the Democratic primary for Governor, and was not expected to win. Nonetheless, he did.
He’s been endorsed by Bernie Sanders, and is campaigning on raising teacher salaries, raising the minimum wage to $15.00, and overturning Stand Your Ground.
His opponent, Ron DeSantis, is a Trump bootlicker with white nationalist sympathies. If elected, Gillum would the first black governor of Florida.
US Senator: Bill Nelson (D)
Bill Nelson has been Florida’ Senator since 2000. His challenger is Rick Scott, the current Governor of Florida.
Rick Scott is a rich Republicanonly who tries to make things better for the rich. He has spent the last eight years making Florida a right-wing dystopia. Now he’s trying to shift blame onto Bill Nelson. But it’s logically absurd.
Bill Nelson is one of the few Southern Democrats remaining in the Senate. His voting record is reliably liberal. He’s a Brevard County native, who’s been winning elections in a heavily conservative district for many years. His critics say that he’s too old, but with Republicans controlling most of Florida, there isn’t anyone with the experience to replace him.
US Congress, Florida’s 8th Distrct: Sanjay Patel (D)
Sanjay Patel is a community organizer and grassroots activist. This year he’s challenging Bill Posey, who has been Congressman since 2008. He’s young, smart, and organized.
Bill Posey began as a moderate green Republican. During the Obama years, he was well liked by both parties. Since 2016, however, he’s aligned himself with Donald Trump, and boarded himself in his office when faced with criticism.
- Attorney General: Sean Shaw (D)
- Chief Financial Officer: Jeremy Ring (D)
- Commissioner of Agriculture: Nikki Fried (D)
State Senator, District 14: Mel Martin (D) State Representative, District 53: Phil Moore (D)
The following races are nonpartisan.
Soil and Water Conservation District: James Sloan and Jonathan Schuman
Palm Bay City Council: Kenny Johnson
Sebastian Inlet Tax District: Adam Byrn Tritt
Amendments
Yes on 3, 4, 9, and 13. No on the rest.