Rep. Maxwell Alejandro Frost at Loch Haven Park in Orlando, Florida on March 2, 2024. Credit: Photo by Dave Decker

As part of a campaign of Democrats holding events in Republican-held congressional districts, Connecticut U.S Sen. Christopher Murphy and Central Florida U.S. Rep. Maxwell Frost will host a town-hall meeting on Saturday.

The venue is in Sarasota in Florida’s 17th Congressional District, held by Republican Greg Steube.

The two Democrats held a similar town hall in North Carolina’s Ninth Congressional District in a seat held by Republican Rep. Richard Hudson last month.

The Sarasota Democratic Party notes in a statement that Steube voted for a budget resolution earlier this year that could potentially make deep cuts to Medicaid, and that like many other congressional Republicans this year hasn’t been hosting town-hall meetings.

“If Steube won’t meet with his constituents to explain his vote, Murphy and Frost will,” the statement says.

The two Democrats filed legislation in February to establish a permanent office focused on gun violence prevention in the U.S. Department of Justice. The White House Office of Gun Violence Prevention was established in 2023 under legislation filed by both Murphy and Frost, but was dismantled by the Trump administration immediately after returning back to the White House in January.

Democrats have held several town-hall meetings in GOP-held congressional districts this year, including ones held by Republicans like Anna Paulina Luna and Neal Dunn.

One Republican who had no qualms about hosting a town-hall meeting this year has been Byron Donalds, now a candidate for governor in 2026.

Also on Friday afternoon in Tallahassee, Martin O’Malley, the former Maryland Democratic governor and and commissioner of the Social Security Administration under the Biden administration, will host a “Save Social Security” town-hall meeting at the Moon nightclub, along with DNC member Samantha Hope Herring.

Florida Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Michael Moline for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com.

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