According to a recent panel of Democratic consultants at the Capital Tiger Bay Club Forum in Tallahassee, Florida Democrats are realistically considering their 20-year plan for being elected statewide across the state.
The consultants highlighted the most basic doctrines for winning any campaign. It involves registering voters and voting for the vote.
Democrats who had completely dominated Florida politics for almost 120 years after the reconstruction have fallen into funk since the administration of President Lawton Chile, and have been able to hold several close gubernatorial elections since then.
And that was before Republicans launched a massive attack on voter registration, from around 1.5 million registered voters behind DEMS in 2012 to over 1 million voters in 2025.
Party chair Nikki Fried, who won the Agricultural Commissioner race in Hibari for supporting medical marijuana, became a joke when he couldn’t even win the governor’s major race in 2022.
With candidates across the state being relatively weak, fundraising has been dire over the past few cycles, and out-of-state donors recognize that the opportunity to win a governor’s mansion is as far away as Florida’s Seminole won the National Football Championship.
Beyond illegal and incompetent leadership, the party still relies on issues that are a step away from voters on important issues.
Even on important issues like abortion and legalized marijuana, the party could not convince enough Democrats and other voters to go to the polls to assert victory.
Task #1, parental rights in education, ordinary environmental management of Everglades and other sensitive lands, balancing national budgets, balancing unhealthy social media, protecting the impact of unhealthy social media, restraining taxes, and supporting Florida voters, turning to notable issues that hit chords that react with Florida voters, and more.
There are undoubtedly important issues that need to be addressed, such as property taxes and homeowners and car insurance costs, but Democrats can’t move forward with solid ideas to solve these illnesses.
It’s not enough for Democrats to simply blame Republicans for high homeowners and car insurance premiums.
For Democrats, the answer is to throw more money on the problem (i.e. education) or kill it.
Although Florida clearly doesn’t spend as much money per student as other states, we know that Florida clearly doesn’t spend as much money per student as other states because our state is ranked number one for the ninth consecutive year in higher education, so we know that Florida clearly doesn’t spend as much money per student as other states.
Looking at other states like California, we also know that the troublesome regulations of insurance companies are not the right solution. Two of America’s biggest insurance companies, State Farm and Allstate, have either stopped writing or significantly reduced writing for new policies in California.
California also has wildfires, earthquakes and other natural disasters, while Florida also has catastrophic hurricanes and tornadoes.
The difference is that Florida created the Florida Hurricane Catastrophic Fund after Hurricane Andrew in 1993, providing reinsurance to help businesses write to the state.
Citizens Insurance, the Florida final resort insurer, is overcontrolled and has established new policy guidelines, requiring all policyholders to be flooded and require them to be more expensive than those available on the market.
As a result, five major Florida auto insurance companies have announced a decline in new filings, and tort reforms in homeowners’ insurance are beginning to stabilize fees and defeat them as well.
The real concern for Florida Democrats is Deepby staring at the lack of solid candidates seeking a statewide office.
For now, let’s focus on the governor’s race.
A leading candidate, former House member David Jolly, was originally a Democrat who changed his party to become a Republican, and then recently became a Democrat again.
The Democrats have already tried this game, but when they accidentally nominated former GOP Governor Charlie Crist, he changed his independent party after running during legislative sessions and ran for the US Senate against Marco Rubio and lost quickly.
They then welcomed him back to Democrats as the standard bearer in 2022, and he lost again to Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis in the historic shellac.
The main issue for Crist was that voters were consistently flip-floping to satisfy the main voters of each party, so they couldn’t confirm which position he really believed in on many issues.
And this same problem plagues Jolie.
However, he could overcome this obstacle without former democratic senator Jason Pizzo, who switched parties during the 2025 legislative meeting and now running as an independent governor.
It’s fine as no independent candidate has ever won a state office.
And you’ll be right.
But Broward County politician Pizzo, with plenty of family money to fund his campaign, will pull out a democratic vote from Jolie, and weaken him badly in the general election.
And God is forbidden. Ubiquitous trial lawyer John Morgan decided to enter the general election at the very last minute, as he threw out more from voters on the left and center left, ensuring the election of Republican candidates.
Cake Icing that completely destroys Florida’s Democrats, if New York City mayoral candidate democratic socialist Zohran Mamdani is running a strong campaign, AOC and Jasmine Crockett will remain the most voiced spokespersons of the National Democrats.
Since 1999, Republicans have repeatedly elected governors, losing only two Cabinet Offices over the last quarter century, each of which has lost only one term.
A 20-year plan?
Perhaps the Abyss is deeper and wider, so Democrats should instead gather 50-year plans.
Bernie Bishop III is a former executive director of the Florida Democrats and former CEO of Florida affiliated industries, known as the “Voice of Florida Business.” He is currently CEO of Barney Bishop Consulting, a strategic public relations company based in Tallahassee, and can be contacted at barney@barneybishop.com.
