Florida lawmakers are now competing to see who is the most popular girl in school -- or state representative -- in Tallahassee.
On Tuesday, House Speaker Richard Corcoran, debuted a new “friendly competition” between state lawmakers to see which one was the most popular on social media.
The contest comes just days after state lawmakers packed up their bags and headed home after an overtime special session which cost taxpayers thousands of dollars.
"The FL HOUSE believes in competition," Corcoran wrote.
State representatives were ranked based on the number of likes on their Facebook pages and the number of Twitter followers each one had.
Some legislators, like state Rep. Kimberly Daniels, D-Jacksonville, boast over 35,000 likes on their Facebook pages. A heavy user of the platform, the “most popular” House freshman routinely posts updates on well, pretty much everything, from bills she’s worked on as an elected official to selfies and photos and videos of her family.
Other state lawmakers, like Rep. Jim Boyd, R-Bradenton, who has nearly 20,000 Facebook likes, simply ask constituents to like posts related to President Donald Trump, welcoming discussion on important issues through Facebook.
The likes continue to pour in.
On Twitter, state Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Naples, dominates the tweet game with nearly 14,000 followers. House Speaker Richard Corcoran, R-Land O’Lakes, trails behind with a little over 9,000 followers.
State reps were ready to throw down the gauntlet to claim victory over the social media approval game, with some lawmakers declaring an all-out war against their fellow legislators to gain the top spot.
“This is war,” tweeted Rep. Carlos Smith, D-Orlando.
There is one caveat, however -- both social media platforms are notorious for “paid” likes which don’t always translate into a real depiction of how popular a state rep is. Kionne Mcghee, for example, has nearly 30,000 likes on his Facebook page but hardly ever pulls more than a dozen likes on each post.
McGhee also ranked in the top five in the Twitter competition.
Some state lawmakers joked they were feeling the pressure to be the best in town and would do anything to rank at the top.
“I need to buy some followers,” Rep. Chris Latvala, R-Clearwater, said. “I don't like where I'm at on the list.”
State legislators often use social media to reach out to constituents with platforms like Facebook and Twitter rapidly becoming a way to gauge voter interest on issues and to communicate with voters.
Legislators also use the platforms to communicate -- and debate -- with each other. State Reps. Manny Diaz, Jr., R-Hialeah, and Shevrin Jones, D-West Park, often get into heated spats over education policy on Twitter.
Similar to a debate on the House floor, the two spar back and forth for hours. On Tuesday, Diaz and Jones duked it out over portions of the House’s recently-passed, controversial HB 7069, which has caused an uproar among education activists, especially on social media.
The totals will be updated monthly, according to Corcoran.
View the full rundown of the “Most Popular State Reps” below:
Reach reporter Allison Nielsen by email at allison@sunshinestatenews.com or follow her on Twitter: @AllisonNielsen.
READ MORE FROM SUNSHINE STATE NEWS
Joe Biden, Bill Nelson Set to Headline Florida Dems Annual Dinner
Florida Voices React to Shooting of Congressman in Alexandria
