Having entered the Republican presidential race last month, U.S. Rep. Michele Bachmann of Minnesota, a favorite of the tea party movement, is riding high in the polls and turning her attention to delegate-rich Florida.
It was announced this week that Bachmann, who is at the moment the chief conservative threat to front-runner Mitt Romney, will be heading to Florida in August and September for two events.
TheAmerican Conservative Union (ACU) announced Thursday that Bachmann will address its Conservative Political Action Conference(CPAC) Florida event which will be in Orlando on Friday, Sept. 23. The CPAC FL meeting will be held at the same time as the Republican Party of Floridas (RPOF) Presidency 5 meeting. The RPOF event will feature a debate by the field of Republican candidates and a straw poll. While the Bachmann camp has not committed to the straw poll, it has left the door open to participating.
Since 2006, Michele Bachmann has been a courageous voice in Congress for constitutional conservatism, fighting against wasteful big-government spending and liberal domestic policies such as Obamacare, said Al Cardenas, chairman of the ACU and a former chairman of the RPOF. We look forward to hosting Congresswoman Bachmann in the Sunshine State for our inaugural regional CPAC, and hearing more about her vision for the future of our nation.
Besides Bachmann, other speakers at the CPAC FL event include four other presidential candidates -- Romney, former U.S. House Speaker Newt Gingrich of Georgia, former Gov. Tim Pawlenty and former U.S. Sen. Rick Santorum of Pennsylvania. Florida Republican U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio and Cardenas will also be speaking.
Bachmann will also be in Orlando on Aug. 27 when the conservative Florida Family Policy Council will be holding its annual policy award dinner. The leaders of the two chambers of the Florida Legislature -- Senate President Mike Haridopolos of Merritt Island and House Speaker Dean Cannon of Winter Park -- will also be honored at the event.
As the Minnesota congresswoman continues to surge in polls at the national and state level, her team is increasingly getting active in the Sunshine State, including setting up a Florida page on the campaigns website.
A poll from the American Research Group released earlier in the week revealed a close contest in Florida between the Republican presidential candidates. While Texas Gov. Rick Perry, who has yet to officially enter the race, topped the poll with 16 percent, Bachmann was right behind him, tied with Romney for second, with 15 percent.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or at (850) 727-0859.
