Mary Thomas Reels in Conservative Group's Endorsement in Race Against Gwen Graham

On Monday, conservative group Madison Project announced its support for Tallahassee lawyer Mary Thomas as she looks to topple U.S. Rep. Gwen Graham, D-Fla., in November. 

“At 37 years of age, Mary Thomas is a rising star in conservative politics,” the Madison Project insisted in its endorsement. “A general counsel inside Gov. Rick Scott’s administration in Florida since 2011, Mary has been involved in interviewing the governor’s nominees as well as serving as general counsel for the Department of Elder’s Affairs in Florida. Already having made the repeal of Obamacare a core component of her campaign, Mary impressed us with her deep knowledge of the Constitution. We have seen this a few times before with great Madison Project candidates-the one that comes to mind is Ted Cruz.

"Florida’s 2nd Congressional District is currently held by a Democrat but with redistricting it is now a strong Republican district which means whoever wins the Republican primary looks to win this seat comfortably in the general election next November,” the Madison Project added. “Though Mary has raised a healthy six figures, she is up against a well funded moderate in the race who, as a lobbyist, fought for the expansion of Medicaid as a part of Obamacare and is on record saying he opposes the repeal of Obamacare because it would ‘jar the economy and leave many people without care.’ 

"This is an opportunity for us to make history as a team, not only by helping Mary win but by helping elect the first Indian-American female to Congress, one who has promised us her first order of business in Washington, DC will be to join the House Freedom Caucus,” the group concluded. "We are thrilled to endorse her and look forward to helping her win both the primary and the general election."

"I couldn't think of a better way to kick off our conservative campaign in 2016 than to receive this major endorsement from a group so highly respected within the conservative movement,” Thomas said. “The backing of groups like Madison Project, along with our campaign's ever growing grassroots organization will help propel us to victory in the August primary. We have momentum and history behind us, and we are poised to deliver a fresh, new conservative voice to serve the people of District Two in Congress."

Thomas faces Dr. Neal Dunn in the Republican primary in August. With the latest round of redistricting, the district is far more Republican leaning than it had been in 2014 when Graham defeated then U.S. Rep. Steve Southerland, R-Fla.