State & Local
Along with up-to-date political coverage, The Floridian takes the opportunity to post about issues, legislation, and lawmakers in local municipalities and at the state level
Miami mayoral candidate Emilio T. Gonzalez has earned the backing of six former South Florida police chiefs in his run for mayor, he announced on Monday. The group getting behind Gonzalez includes former City of Miami Police Chief Jorge Colina, former Director of the Miami-Dade Police Department Juan Perez, former Police Chief of El Portal […]
Florida is the place to be among U.S. destinations where Americans were happiest this summer, according to a new analysis from AttractionTickets.com. The Sunshine State scored four spots in the rankings' top 20, with three in Orlando alone. Discovery Cove, a resort in Orlando, earned the highest ranking on the list with a total score […]
Coral Gables Mayor Vince Lago is making a plea to conservative lawmakers, suggesting that “the best way to win red is to go green.”
Representative Gus Bilirakis (R-FL) is introducing a bipartisan, bicameral bill to protect seniors' access to laboratory testing for new medications. For additional context, the Medicare Clinical Laboratory Fee Schedule is the system by which the Centers for Medicare and Medicaid Services (CMS) pays for clinical diagnostic lab tests, based on the weighted median of private […]
Gov. Ron DeSantis celebrated a state appeals court's ruling that a Florida law banning the open carry of firearms is unconstitutional. The decision was announced by Judge Stephanie Ray of the First District Court, who authored the opinion, along with Lori Rowe and M. Kemmerly Thomas, on Wednesday. "This decision aligns state policy with my […]
Florida Congresswoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D) and all of Florida’s Congressional Democrats called on Governor Ron DeSantis to reverse the state’s recently updated vaccination policies. Last week, Governor DeSantis unveiled a revision to Florida’s vaccination policy plan that aims to eliminate state-mandated vaccinations. Florida’s House Republicans were invited to sign on to the request, which […]
Florida Congressman Mario Díaz-Balart (R) stands with Kentucky Congressman Andy Barr (R) and his “Stop Chinese Fentanyl Act” as they aim to curb the U.S. fentanyl epidemic by imposing heavy sanctions on CCP fentanyl producers. Rep. Díaz-Balart, who represents Florida's District 26, which encompasses an area of South Florida gripped by the fentanyl crisis, expressed […]
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier discussed the recent federal ruling on the operation of the Everglades Detention Facility, also known as Alligator Alcatraz, in an interview with FOX Business. When asked whether the facility will cease operations, Uthmeier said, “This is mission ongoing” as he intends to appeal the ruling. “We believe we're right on […]
A Florida Republican wants to make public whether mass shooters, terrorists, or "unprovoked" attackers ever took antidepressants or hormones, he announced Thursday. The proposed bill, set to be filed by Sen. Jonathan Martin, would let Floridians know if "any unprovoked person" was on SSRIs (the most commonly prescribed antidepressant) or received hormone therapy at any […]
The University of Florida is the fifth-best public university in the nation, according to Forbes' 2026 list of the best colleges and universities. The Gators were also named the 30th-best university overall in the United States and earned the top spot among Florida schools. “This is proof that the University of Florida is going forward […]
When 17-year-old Clayton Emerson’s motorcycle slammed into a pickup truck illegally pulled into oncoming traffic, he was killed almost instantly. But Gainesville police never checked whether the driver was under the influence. Instead, the driver received a traffic ticket. “Clayton’s Law” would change that. Crafted by Emerson’s mother, a single mom and office manager at […]
The U.S. Coast Guard seized a record 76,140 pounds of illicit narcotics valued at $473 million in Port Everglades on Monday. The historic bust from the U.S. Cutter Hamilton included 61,740 pounds of cocaine and 14,400 pounds of marijuana. “The U.S. Coast Guard, in partnership with our federal, DoD, and international partners, is offloading 61,740 […]
Florida Lieutenant Governor Jay Collins (R-FL) discussed the arrest of Harjinder Singh, an illegal alien truck driver, in a recent appearance on Fox News while further blasting California, where Singh obtained his commercial driver's license, as a "blue state idiocracy." Host Martha MacCallum began noting that another illegal alien driver had recently been arrested, asking […]
Representative Maxwell Frost (D-FL) is announcing that a new passport application office is being built in Orlando after years of demanding a second location in Florida. As we covered last May, Rep. Frost described how the Miami Passport Agency in Miami is the sole passport application office in the entire state, putting it too far […]
A coalition of Senate and House Democrats is pushing the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) for more information regarding the uses of the controversial Everglades Detention Facility, also known as ‘Alligator Alcatraz.’ Florida Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D) and Oregon Senator Jeff Merkley (D) spearheaded a letter to the heads of DHS, Immigration and Customs […]
Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) has announced that he and Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier will collaborate on an effort to correct the 2020 U.S. Census potentially awarding Florida additional seats in the House of Representatives. Gov. DeSantis released a statement claiming that the previous Biden Administration was aware that Florida’s 2020 Census data was […]
Florida welcomed a record-setting 34.4 million visitors in the second quarter of 2025, extending on a historic first quarter in tourism for the Sunshine State despite global uncertainty during the early days of the Trump administration. The second quarter (Q2) runs from April to the end of June. “Florida continues to lead the way as […]
Florida Senator Rick Scott (R) made a statement putting California on blast for its “lawlessness” following an accident where a semi-truck driver made an illegal U-turn on Florida’s Turnpike, causing the deaths of three people in Fort Pierce. “It should make every American furious to see California’s lawlessness costing three innocent people their lives. This […]
