Two South Florida Republicans serving in the Florida House will be part of the Republican State Leadership Committee’s (RSLC) Future Majority Project (FMP) as the GOP looks to win over minority voters for the 2016 elections. The RSLC’s mission is “to elect down-ballot, state-level Republican officeholders.”
Republican state Reps. Jose Felix Diaz of Miami and Jose Oliva of Hialeah were named to the FMP board for the 2016 election cycle on Wednesday, joining more than 25 other Republicans from across the nation. Oliva is on track to become House speaker after the 2018 elections.
Oklahoma House Speaker T.W. Shannon will chair the FMP with Gov. Susana Martinez of New Mexico and Gov. Brian Sandoval of New Mexico and Nevada as the co-chairs.
“As someone who has served in the trenches of state government, I understand the importance of recruiting the right candidates with the right message in every district and state across the country,” said Shannon on Wednesday. “It has been an honor to work with the Future Majority Project in finding and supporting diverse candidates, and I look forward to leading this group into another successful election cycle in 2016.”
“The Republican Party is the party of entrepreneurs, innovators, and bold new ideas,” said Sandoval. “The Future Majority Project is fully committed to fielding candidates who represent these priorities and reflect the increased diversity of the American electorate. I am confident that across the country, more men and women will begin to embrace the goals we have outlined this cycle as we recruit and elect the next generation of Republican leaders.”
In the 2014 elections, the FMP recruited 250 candidates and 50 of them won office. In 2016, FMP aims to repeat that success hoping to get 10 candidates to statewide office and planning to spend $7 million in support of its candidates.
Former Gov. Luis Fortuño, who sits on the RSLC board, insisted the GOP was making inroads by running “diverse Republican candidates.”
“The progress we have seen in electing diverse Republican candidates over just a few short years is really remarkable,” Fortuño said on Wednesday. “The RSLC understands the important investment of diverse candidate recruitment, and I’m excited to see what FMP has in store for this cycle.”
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
