| | | | |  | | By Kimberly Leonard | |  Liberty Counsel founder and Chairman Mathew Staver speaks to reporters in front of the Florida Supreme Court after telling justices a proposed amendment to protect abortion rights should be kept off the ballot on Wednesday, Feb. 7, 2024, in Tallahassee, Fla. | Brendan Farrington/AP Photo | Good morning and welcome to Tuesday. The campaigns behind ballot measures on abortion rights and pot legalization — both opposed by Florida Republicans and Gov. Ron DeSantis — just released new figures about their fundraising. Floridians Protecting Freedom raised $11.8 million from April 1 through the end of May, following the state Supreme Court ruling at the start of that period that the question over abortion rights could be placed on November’s ballot, and as Florida’s six-week abortion ban went into effect May 1. The money represents a surge in donations since last year, and will be used to urge voters to support Amendment 4, a provision that would make abortion legal through viability, and after in cases where a health care provider determines there’s a health reason to terminate a pregnancy. Almost 70 percent of donations were from people living in Florida, though large chunks of cash also came from out of state, including $2.8 million from the San Francisco-based Tides Foundation, which directs money to progressive nonprofits. Another $1 million came from the Washington, D.C.-based Fairness Project, which directs funding to ballot measures, and $1 million from the DC liberal dark money group Sixteen Thirty Fund. Lauren Brenzel, campaign director for the Yes On 4 Campaign, said the increase in donations “provides us a glimmer of hope.” “Regardless of income or background, every Floridian deserves the freedom to make their own health care decisions without government interference, including abortion, and we’ll keep up the fight to make that a reality,” she said. Florida Voters Against Extremism, the group leading the effort to oppose the abortion referendum, raised almost $104,000 in April and May, with the largest chunk of $75,000 coming from Floridians for Conservative Values, chaired by state Rep. Clay Yarborough. The group told Playbook in a statement that it was “just getting started.” Its goal will be to tell voters the amendment is “deceptive, dangerous and extreme,” said Taryn Fenske, spokesperson for the effort, who pointed to its allowances for post-viability abortions and how it would authorize health care providers who aren't doctors to provide abortions. Smart & Safe Florida, the campaign to legalize cannabis for recreational use among adults 21 and older, known as Amendment 3, continued to largely receive donations from big industry players. In all, the effort raised $5.2 million from the beginning of April to the end of May, with $5 million coming from Trulieve, the largest medical cannabis dispenser in Florida. The effort did gain industry group contributors since early April. The other Florida medical pot companies that contributed were Insa with $150,000, and Green Sentry, known as Sunburn, with $50,000, per a review of filings by POLITICO’s Arek Sarkissian. Morgan Hill, spokesperson for Smart & Safe Florida, said the group was “proud” to have expanded its support from industry groups and pointed to a Fox News poll that showed 66 percent of Floridians supported the amendment. “It’s clear Floridians are more ready than ever to legalize recreational adult use marijuana," Hill said. The next campaign reporting period will be even more telling, especially given that DeSantis quietly launched his new fundraising vehicle, called Florida Freedom Fund, last month, POLITICO’s Gary Fineout reported. Chief of staff James Uthmeier is the chair of the state political committee, which will broadly focus on fighting the abortion and pot amendments, as well as help with school board races — an area where DeSantis has been influential in the past. As Gary Fineout reports, “DeSantis has roundly criticized both initiatives as ‘radical’ and ‘extreme’ and has predicted that voters would ultimately reject them. But thus far, there has yet to be significant organized opposition to either ballot measure — something DeSantis' new political committee could rapidly change.” Have a tip, story, suggestion, birthday, anniversary, new job, or any other nugget in the campaign reporting that Playbook should look at? Get in touch at: kleonard@politico.com.
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Our newsroom is deeper, more experienced, and better sourced than any other—with teams embedded in the world’s most active legislative and regulatory power centers. From Brussels to Washington, New York to London, Sacramento to Paris, we bring subscribers inside the conversations that determine policy outcomes and the future of industries, providing insight that cannot be found anywhere else. Get the premier news and policy intelligence service, SUBSCRIBE TO POLITICO PRO TODAY. | | | | | |  | ... DATELINE TALLAHASSEE ... | | |  Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis speaks during a news conference on February 05, 2024 in Miami Beach, Florida. | Joe Raedle/Getty Images | BUDGET SIGNING AHEAD — With the start of the next fiscal year right around the corner, Gov. Ron DeSantis said on Monday that he is likely to sign off on a new budget and issue his much-anticipated line-item vetoes this week. During a press conference DeSantis held in Hialeah to highlight $1.25 billion in teacher pay raises contained in the spending plan, the governor said he had already signed off on about “90 percent” of what’s contained in the $117.4 billion budget. DeSantis added “this is going to probably be the week that it all comes to a head.” Legislators passed the new budget back in March at the end of their annual legislative session. It covers spending for the 2024-25 fiscal year that starts on July 1. The big question, as is every year, is how much spending does DeSantis veto from the budget. DeSantis has already hinted that he does plan to eliminate some spending item,s but has not released any specifics. — Gary Fineout PAY HIKE COMING — “DeSantis approves $1.25 billion to increase teacher pay,” by Spectrum News’ Phillip Stucky. “Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis announced Monday that he would approve $1.25 billion in education related funding for teacher pay, an increase of $200 million from last year, according to the governor’s office. The latest educator pay package builds on increases since the governor took office, increasing starting teacher salaries from roughly $40,000 a year, to roughly $48,000 a year … Meanwhile, the [Florida Education Association] took issue with the amount of funding going towards vouchers to private schools, saying that of the $2.3 billion invested in education in 2023, $1.1 billion went towards private schools through the state’s new voucher program and allows parents to use state funds to pay towards private tuition.” RUSH AHEAD OF DEADLINE — “Number of abortions in Florida surged ahead of six-week ban,” reports the Tampa Bay Times’ Christopher O’Donnell. “More than 9,600 abortions were reported to the state in May, well above the 7,000 monthly average recorded throughout 2023.” — “As Florida abortion ban disrupts care, activists push ballot initiative,” reports Axios Tampa’s Kathryn Varn. POT LEGALIZATION FOE — “Florida pot legalization amendment has a surprising opponent: Medical marijuana doctors,” by POLITICO’s Arek Sarkissian. “The state’s largest medical marijuana company has bankrolled Amendment 3, which would legalize recreational marijuana for adults 21 and older. But some of the roughly 2,000 doctors who are state-certified to recommend pot as medicine are warning patients about the consequences that could jeopardize access to the drug for medicinal purposes. They say the new amendment could imperil access for the state’s 882,000 active medical marijuana patients. The anticipated flood of customers visiting medical marijuana dispensaries to buy recreational marijuana could leave patients without the specific plant strains or products they use to treat medical conditions like chronic pain or a serious illness. And the passage of Amendment 3 could kick off a regulatory overhaul that they say would place future regulation in the hands of a GOP-led Legislature that has already been trying to tighten controls for years.” ‘LENNAR PERMITTING LANGUAGE’ — “A giant homebuilder wrote a Florida law to build housing subdivisions faster and cheaper,” reports Jason Garcia of Seeking Rents. “The bill allows homebuilders to hire private contractors in order to perform faster reviews of development applications. It enables them to more quickly lock in ‘vested rights’ that shield them from any stricter development rules or environmental regulations that a community might adopt in the future. And it permits builders to begin selling future homes sooner.” INSURANCE REQUIRED FOR MORTGAGES, BUT … “In the coming years, climate change could force Americans from their homes, not just by raising sea levels, worsening wildfires and causing floods — but also by putting insurance coverage out of reach,” reports The Associated Press. “In places including California, Florida and Louisiana, some homeowners are finding it nearly impossible to find an insurance company that will cover their property. Others have seen their premiums climb so high that they can no longer pay. Experts say the trend is spreading throughout the country as natural disasters increase.” APPEALED — “Florida Power & Light customers seek another look at outages case from Hurricane Irma,” reports Jim Saunders of News Service of Florida. “Attorneys for Florida Power & Light customers late Thursday asked an appeals court to reconsider a ruling that dealt a blow to a lawsuit alleging the utility did not meet obligations to help prevent power outages during Hurricane Irma. In a 43-page motion, the attorneys sought a rehearing at the 3rd District Court of Appeal — or possibly for the Miami-based appeals court to send the dispute to the Florida Supreme Court.”
| | PENINSULA AND BEYOND | | — “Newsmax Considers IPO with private placement of up to $225 Million,” reports The Wall Street Journal’s Ben Glickman. MIGHT HAVE LOWER VOTER TURNOUT — “Tampa Bay’s vote-by-mail requests plunge as 2024 election nears,” by the Tampa Bay Times’ Nina Moske. “Tampa Bay is facing a steep drop in vote-by-mail requests ahead of the presidential election, the result of changes in state law that Gov. Ron DeSantis said would make the voter rolls more secure … So far, fewer than 42,000 Pasco voters have requested mail-in ballots for the general election. Compare that with more than 124,400 requests two years ago. Hillsborough has less than 155,500 vote-by-mail requests for the general election on file, a dip compared with the more than 335,600 requests it fulfilled in the midterms. And in Pinellas, the elections office has roughly 232,900 requests on file this year compared with more than 332,800 requests in 2022.” — “As FAU prepares to search for new president again, some remain concerned,” by the South Florida Sun Sentinel’s Scott Travis.
| | CAMPAIGN MODE | | ELECTION SET FOR JUNE 18 — “One candidate was fired. Another has multiple arrests. Orlando’s District 5 race heats up,” reports the Orlando Sentinel’s Ryan Gillespie. “With the contest winnowed to Shaniqua ‘Shan’ Rose and Travaris McCurdy, questions have surfaced surrounding Rose’s forced exit from a job at Orlando City Hall, along with others about McCurdy’s arrest history, which were highlighted in a mailer sent by a secretive group that may flout state election laws.” FACING ELECTION — “Monique Worrell puts her political future in the hands of voters,” reports Florida Politics’ Christine Jordan Sexton. “Suspended Orange-Osceola County State Attorney Monique Worrell, flanked by local and state Democrats this weekend, publicly denounced the recent Florida Supreme Court decision that upheld Gov. Ron DeSantis’ decision to remove her from office. Worrell — who made remarks ahead of a Saturday evening gathering of the Democratic Black Caucus of Florida in Orlando — also suggested that she would put her career in the hands of voters instead of challenging her suspension in the Florida Senate. Worrell is seeking another term in office and is already on the November ballot.” NEW CANDIDATE — “California nurse, political unknown files for Tallahassee City Commission race,” reports Jeff Burlew of the Tallahassee Democrat. “An apparent newcomer to politics — if not the city of Tallahassee itself — has filed to run for City Commission Seat 2, though she’s keeping her candidacy low-profile at best for now. Donna Nyack, a longtime registered nurse from the Bakersfield, California, area, filed to run for the post on May 28. She pre-qualified for the ballot on May 31, which means she will have met all her filing requirements by the time qualifying week begins Monday.” QUALIFYING DEADLINE AHEAD — “Florida Democrats hope full field of candidates can turn fortunes around,” by John Kennedy of USA Today Network — Florida. “Florida Democrats expect to have a full complement of state House and Senate contenders filing as candidates during this week’s qualifying period, with the robust roster seen as a pivotal step toward reviving a party now at an historic low.”
| | TRUMPLANDIA AND THE SWAMP | | |  Republican presidential candidate, former President Donald Trump speaks at a campaign rally Sunday, June 9, 2024, in Las Vegas. | John Locher/AP | POLLSTER WITH TOP TRACK RECORD — “Florida pollster finds Donald Trump with 10-point lead in state,” by Jacob Ogles of Florida Politics. “Former President Donald Trump and U.S. Sen. Rick Scott appear on their way to winning Florida by double digits. That’s according to one of the state’s top GOP pollsters. Ryan Tyson’s The Tyson Group found around 46 percent of likely General Election voters intend to support Trump in November, while just 36 percent plan to vote for Democratic incumbent Joe Biden. That’s as of June 10. Trump’s lead falls outside the poll’s 3-percentage-point margin of error. Scott holds a greater lead in the poll. The incumbent Republican Senator boasts 46 percent support, while Democratic challenger Debbie Mucarsel-Powell has just 33 percent.” REMOTE MEETING FROM MAR-A-LAGO — “Trump undergoes probation interview virtually,” by CBS News’ Katrina Kaufman, Graham Kates and Fin Gómez. “Former President Donald Trump's pre-sentencing interview with the New York probation office took place virtually on Monday, a source familiar with the proceedings confirmed. After becoming the first former president in American history convicted in a criminal trial, Trump on Monday encountered another first: an interview with a probation officer. ‘Earlier today, President Trump completed a routine interview with New York Probation Office,’ the source said. ‘The interview was uneventful and lasted less than thirty minutes.’"
| | TRANSITION TIME | | — Michael Moline has been named editor-in-chief of the Florida Phoenix, the Tallahassee based outlet overseen by the national nonprofit news organization States Newsroom. Moline is taking the position after the retirement of Diane Rado, whose lengthy news career included stints at the St. Petersburg (Tampa Bay) Times and the Chicago Tribune. — Christopher Heath, a veteran television reporter for Orlando WFTV-TV, has left the station and is now the communications director for the Orange County supervisor of elections office.
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