With Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-FL) still participating and facilitating the clean-up and rescue efforts following Hurricane Ian, Rep. Val Demings (D-FL) is looking to help the state of Florida in a different way.
Despite currently holding a seat as a Congresswoman in the United States House of Representatives and running for the Senate against incumbent Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL), Val Demings is calling for a special emergency session in the Florida Legislature.
“Florida families are hurting, the property insurance system is crumbling, and homeowners are paying the price, literally,” said Demings in a press release. “As the daughter of a maid and a janitor I saw how hard my parents worked for their home and their property. With Hurricane Ian dealing a heavy blow to Florida communities it is critical that leaders across our state come together without delay and take unified action to shore up Citizens and ensure that our insurance system can withstand this storm.”
Demings later states that working as a legislator at the federal level makes this situation out of her purview, and that the state of Florida needs to “build an insurance system that is accessible and affordable.
“Short-term patches and band aids during election years are not sufficient to protect Florida’s homeowners. In Congress, we are working to reduce costs for Florida’s homeowners, and I’ve cosponsored federal legislation to shore up the insurance market, but this crisis is fundamentally a state issue,” stated Demings.
“I call on the governor and state legislature to hold an emergency session to implement state-level reforms to stand up for Florida families. Our response to this storm must go beyond sandbags and plywood – we owe it to Florida families to build an insurance system that is accessible and affordable.”
Demings will go head-to-head with Rubio for 1 of Florida’s Senate seats on November 8th. The latest Mason-Dixon poll has Rubio leading Demings by 6 percentage points.
