The Republican Party of Florida has targeted certain House districts to recapture, and one apparently is HD 52 in St. Petersburg, currently held by Democrat Bill Heller.
Jeff Brandes is the new Republican candidate in the race, enlisting after Connie Deneault dropped out suddenly last week. We don't know much about Brandes, but we learn about his biography in this television ad that has already gone up.
Of course Brandes is running on an anti-incumbent, anti-Tallahassee sentiment that seems to be in the playbook for all newcomers this political season.
But just like Republicans can justifiably rail against the problems of Washington since the Dems have been in control the past few years, wouldn't that mean that Democrats are the ones that should have the strong anti-Tallahassee message, seeing that they haven't controlled anything in the state capitol in over a decade?
As I've written in our publication already, being a House Democrat in Tallahassee is a lonely job. They don't have a whole lot of power to do much but play defense.
But never let that get in the way of a good narrative. Unless the Dems Looks like the GOP wants this one badly. Should be interesting come November.
This article appears in Jun 17-23, 2010.