State Rep. Bob Cortes, R-Altamonte Springs, has decided to pass on challenging U.S. Rep. Stephanie Murphy, D-Fla., in 2018.
Cortes had been the subject of speculation as a potential challenger for taking on Murphy who narrowly defeated longtime U.S. Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., in an upset last year. On Thursday, Cortes, the vice chair of the House Education Committee, said he had considered launching a bid against Murphy but decided it was not the right time.
“Several weeks ago, a news story broke that I was considering becoming a candidate for Congressional District 7,” Cortes said. “The truth is that I was and have been for a couple of months. Almost immediately after the general election in 2016, I had been approached by friends, donors, and Republican leadership to consider a candidacy against Stephanie Murphy.”
Despite not getting in the race, Cortes fired a few shots at Murphy.
"The reason why I took the urging so seriously is because I do believe that Central Florida is being misrepresented by Mrs. Murphy and that she needs to come home,” Cortes said. “She has shown an immediate inclination to fall in lockstep with her caucus leadership in Washington instead of truly representing the people that elected her. We just finished an election that was akin to a revolution. Americans across the land just loudly stated that they were done with the insider-driven politics and politicians that spend their time concerned only about what the beltway thinks.
"I also took this opportunity seriously because I believe it is time for conservative Puerto Ricans to take a leadership role on the national political scene,” Cortes added. “For too long, the Puerto Rican community has been thought of as a sub-set of the Democrat party. More and more of my Puerto Rican colleagues have become disenchanted with big government solutions. Liberals always over-promise and never deliver. In fact, the island of Puerto Rico itself has become a microcosm of this phenomenon. Too much spending, too much government, and too much regulation have killed off private enterprise, encouraged corruption, and left the middle class and working families behind. That’s why Puerto Ricans are moving to Florida for the opportunity that Republican leadership provides. Again, Stephanie Murphy has shown herself to be an avid supporter of Obamacare, higher taxes, and government interventionist policy that will bankrupt our country and do nothing for the people that she is supposedly inclined to help.
"Virginia and I have been gratified by the outpouring of support over the past several weeks,” Cortes concluded. “We sought God's direction in prayer, and we have been encouraged on so many fronts. I am not saying that I will never do it, but now is not the time. The voters elected me to do a job in Tallahassee. There is still much more work to be done, and I have decided to keep my efforts, for the moment, focused on serving my constituents in the Legislature. We have the opportunity over the next few years to make Florida the top economy in the world. Let’s make the most of it.”
Even with Cortes out of the race, Murphy should still expect a tough fight come 2018. She took 51.5 percent while Mica pulled 48.5 percent back in November. Last month, the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) included Murphy in its first wave of Democrats to target in 2018. Democrats are also gearing up for a fight in this Central Florida district. Earlier this month, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) marked Murphy as one of the incumbents it is focused on defending.
With Cortes out, Republicans will look for other candidates. One name getting some early buzz is state Sen. David Simmons, R-Longwood, who served four terms in the House and has been in the Senate since being elected in 2010.
