Big day in RPOF World. The race is on for party chairman.
Early today Christian Ziegler, chairman of Republican state committeemen and women, denied the governor was encouraging him to run for party chairman. In fact, he told Sunshine State News he hadn't made up his mind whether to challenge current Chairman Blaise Ingoglia.
Minutes later, however, Ziegler fired off an email to all 133 state committeemen and women announcing he will indeed run for the post in January.
The notice caught Ingoglia's eye.
Taking a post-election break, Ingoglia posted notice of his own plans on Facebook:
"Well, I was hoping to announce this after Thanksgiving so everyone could spend time with their families and give everyone a much-needed break from politics, but the events of today will not allow me, or us, that luxury.
"I want everyone to know that I will indeed be running for a second term as the Chairman of the Republican Party of Florida. In 2014, when I originally announced my candidacy for Chairman, I did so promising much needed reforms and focusing on delivering our 29 electoral votes to our Republican nominee. We not only delivered on our promises, we delivered historic wins for Senator Marco Rubio, our Congressional delegation, our Florida legislature, and delivered by winning the State of Florida for the first time since 2004 for now President-elect Donald Trump. I humbly ask for your continued support as Chairman of the Republican Party of Florida."
In his announcement Ziegler said, “I believe we must be an independent-yet-unified Republican Party of Florida, with a Chairman whose sole focus is strengthening the Party within the most important political state in the union,” he said in his announcement. “I will make this my full-time mission.”
A political consultant told SSN on condition of anonymity, "Ziegler is making a direct reference to getting party money back. Right now you have money in the governor's political committee, money in the Senate and money in the party. The governor holds the purses -- he always has."
Other sources close to the governor told SSN on Wednesday Gov. Rick Scott has a particular interest in this RPOF election and will back a Ziegler candidacy. Unseating Ingoglia, they said, would be 1) a way to install Scott's own team at RPOF as he lines up his campaign for U.S. Senate in 2018; and 2) pay back incoming House Speaker Richard Corcoran, who first introduced Ingoglia for the position and has made a mission of killing Enterprise Florida, one of the governor's prize endeavors.
The sources said if Scott had his own man installed as chairman, he would return to dialing for dollars on RPOF's behalf -- something he stopped doing in January 2015 when Ingoglia defeated his hand-picked candidate for chair, Leslie Dougher.
One source told SSN he had personal knowledge that Scott and Ziegler did have a face-to-face meeting.
Scott's office was unavailable to comment by 3:30 Wednesday afternoon.
Here is the full text of what Ziegler wrote to his committeemen and women, under the headline "A pivotal time for our party":
"Last week, we celebrated an election victory that both the media and establishment had written off as impossible. They did everything they could to deliver a victory for Hillary Clinton. And they failed.
"Under your leadership, the grassroots here in Florida did not cave in to Democrats’ attempts to discredit, discourage and confuse. They stood up and worked to register voters, make calls, knock on doors, chase absentee ballots … and get out the vote for now President-elect Donald Trump. This historic victory in Florida would not have been possible without your commitment and work at the local level.
"As we turn the page from the election, we have a lot of work to do over the next two years to ensure victory in 2018 -- work that takes focus and resources. In addition to supporting the Trump Administration, we will need to strengthen our Republican Party of Florida to send an ally to the U.S. Senate who will work alongside our great Senator, Marco Rubio. We will need to replace our term-limited Governor and the entire Cabinet, in addition to protecting majorities in the State Senate and State House of Representatives. And we will need to win the many local races across our great state.
"To help generate the momentum, unity and resources we need to accomplish this, I am excited to announce my candidacy for Chairman of the Republican Party of Florida, and ask for your support.
"I am driven to do so with passion and purpose:
- "I believe we must be an independent-yet-unified Republican Party of Florida, with a Chairman whose sole focus is strengthening the Party within the most important political state in the union. I will make this my full-time mission.
- "I’ve spent over a decade working on campaigns at the presidential, statewide, and local levels. During this time, I have built relationships with the current Trump Team — in addition to relationships with our Governor and members of the State Legislature — that will help foster a united Party.
- "I have tirelessly defended and promoted our Republican Party’s conservative principles, not shying away from publicly debating countless members of the Democratic Party, the CEO of Planned Parenthood (SW Florida), pro-Amnesty groups, and any liberal seeking to attack our party, candidates or values.
- "Lastly, and probably most importantly, I have succeeded in both business and politics by living as a servant leader. As Chairman of the 134-member RPOF State Committeeman and Committeewomen’s Caucus, it has been a joy to serve as a resource and work alongside you to ensure your county’s Republican Party is as strong as possible. I will bring that same passion and leadership style to the Republican Party of Florida as Chairman.
"I look forward to spending the next couple of months meeting with each one of you and hearing your feedback and recommendations, in addition to sharing more on my plans for the Republican Party of Florida. In the meantime, my door is always open and I encourage you to contact me directly by calling me on my cell: 202.731.7213 or email: Christian@ChristianGOP.com.
"This is an exciting yet pivotal time as we launch into an era of new leadership. But we cannot rest on our laurels. With your support and hard work, I know we will unify and strengthen the Republican Party of Florida."
See this recent SSN story that describes some of the party's activities under Ingoglia.
Reach Nancy Smith at nsmith@sunshinestatenews.com or at 228-282-2423. Twitter: @NancyLBSmith
