First Read

At Leadership Blue, Florida Democrats thumb their noses at GOP

They even closed out their Miami Beach gala with a drag show.

Photo by Tristan Wood/City & State Florida

By Tristan Wood

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Tristan Wood
By Tristan Wood
Staff Writer

There was no doubt that the Florida Democratic Party’s Leadership Blue gala at the Fontainebleau Miami Beach was aggressive as its various presenters levied attack after attack against the state’s Republican Party of Florida. Symbols of defiance, like a mockingjay pin and closing the event with a drag show, clearly were meant to thumb their nose at the state’s majority party that the Democrats label as authoritarian. 

Various speakers, including party chair Nikki Fried and keynote speaker and “West Wing” actor Bradley Whitford dished insults and expletive-laden criticism at Gov. Ron DeSantis and the RPOF as a whole. They even debuted new branding to reclaim America’s flag from the Republicans. Several attendees remarked that it was the most energetic gala in recent memory.

But missing from the event was a clear vision for the party to lift off and up from the rock bottom it’s on. Republicans have them out-registered by half a million voters almost a year after an election cycle in which they dominated at the top of the ticket and won a supermajority in both chambers of the Legislature. And there’s still no mainstream candidate to challenge U.S. Sen. Rick Scott’s reelection next year. 

The business side of the event also outwardly appeared largely status-quo to what got the Democrats here in the first place. The corporate sponsors of the gala consisted of the usual suspects in state political donations, like Florida Power & Light, Florida Crystals and Publix. While those companies do usually give to Democrats, they donate far more to Republicans. 

This is First Up, an excerpt from City & State's daily morning newsletter, First Read. To subscribe for free, please visit our newsletters page. 

NEXT STORY: How Florida helps Holocaust victims’ families get back ill-gotten gains

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