Political Hurricane Endorsement: Frank Bruno For Florida Senate District 7

Candidate recruitment has been one of many issues which have dogged Florida’s Democrats in recent years. Often times winnable seats for the party are squandered because little or no effort is made to find attractive candidates in marginal areas well in advance of an election. An exception was made in the Senate seat being vacated by the term limited Evelyn Lynn, where the Democrats have recruited a local superstar.

This website has made no secret of our concerns about the leadership of the Florida Democratic Party. But in the case of Frank Bruno, the Volusia County Chair Rod Smith deserves credit for his efforts to coax the most visible and electable Democrat in the area into this race. Bruno has been a visible and effective elected official for almost thirty years. Bruno spent 12 years on the Volusia County Council in two stints before becoming the first elected County Chair in 2004. He was re-elected in 2008 without opposition.

During Bruno’s time as County Chair the area attracted more businesses, events and tourists than previously. County Government was also made more efficient and Bruno developed and maintained good relationships with most of the leaders of the counties municipalities, be they Republicans or Democrats.

Republican Dorothy Hukill, a former municipal elected official herself has served without distinction in the Florida House over the last eight years. Hukill has been a conventional conservative Republican who almost always votes with her party’s extreme leadership and has benefited directly from the partisan gerrymander of Volusia’s House and Senate seats in the 2002-2012 period.

The reason we have chosen to make an endorsement in this race which lacks a Democratic Primary is because we feel it imperative that Democrats across the state begin to focus on this  particular Senate seat. This seat represents the best opportunity on the map for the Democrats to pick up a seat in an area that has been frustratingly elusive in recent legislative elections.  In the upcoming weeks the majority of our endorsements will focus on critical Democratic primaries with an occasional general election endorsement like this one.

The Political Hurricane highly recommends and endorses Frank Bruno in  the Florida Senate 7th District.