Leon and Jefferson counties have issued advisories warning residents of recent outbreaks of West Nile virus andEastern equine encephalitis virus (or "sleeping sickness") in the area. Both diseases are borne by mosquitoes, and officials are advising residents to take several common-sense precautions to avoid getting bitten.

Here is the advisory in full:

Leon County Health Department Release

From the Florida attorney general's office:

"Attorney General Pam Bondi today announced the appointment of Timothy Osterhaus to serve as Floridas Solicitor General, the state governments top appellate lawyer. Osterhaus has served as Deputy Solicitor General for the Attorney Generals Office since 2007. In connection with his appointment, Osterhaus will be the Richard W. Ervin Eminent Scholar Chair and serve as a visiting professor of law at Florida State University College of Law."

Republican nominee Ted Yoho, of Floridas 3^rdCongressional District, will announce later today a major endorsement from former Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin.Sunshine State News has obtained an advance copy of a press release soon to be issuedfrom Yoho's campaign.

Starting tomorrow, Sunshine State News will be publishing articles on the Ron Paul festivities preceding next week's Republican National Convention. We will have a full-time correspondent on the ground, bringing our readers firsthand coverage of bothRon Paul Festival 2012(Friday and Saturday, Florida State Fairgrounds, Tampa)and Dr. Paul's official pre-Convention Rally(Sunday, USF Sun Dome, Tampa).

You, our readers,asked the questions; we at Sunshine got the answers!

Ted Yoho's Republican nomination for Florida's newly-created 3rd Congressional District, over and against 24-year incumbent Cliff Stearns, is being called one of the greatest congressional upsets in the state's history. And this morning, he laid everything on the table in his most candid interview yet on the campaign trail.

On Thursday morning, Sunshine State News will be interviewing Ted Yoho, Republican nominee for Florida's newly-created 3rd Congressional District; his primary victory last night over 24-year incumbent Cliff Stearns is being called one of the worst congressional upsets in Florida's history. {Check out yesterday's election-night coverage for the background.}

In what might well be Florida's greatest congressional upset in years, tea party-backed Ted Yoho has narrowly beat out 24-year conservative incumbent Cliff Stearns in Tuesday's tight and very bitter four-way primary election.

Catch the full story at Sunshine State News.

To no one's surprise, incumbent Bill Nelson has scored an overwhelming victory against token Democratic primary opponent Glenn Burkett in Florida's U.S. Senate race. Early returns show Nelson pulling in about 79 percent of the vote.

Sen. Nelson will now face off against Rep. Connie Mack IV, R-Fort Myers, in the Nov. 6 general election. Nelson, a two-term senator, succeeded Mack's father, Sen. Connie Mack III, in 2000.

My latest at Sunshine State News: my take on why constitutional libertarians should bite the bullet and support the GOP presidential ticket, even as they (i.e., libertarians) continue to serve as the party's "loyal opposition."

Judge Thomas P. Crapps of the Florida Division of Administrative Hearings will issue a final ruling in two weeks,regardingimplementation of a controversial new elections law. He announced his intention after adjourning the latest hearing Friday, at about 2:15 p.m.

The disputed provisions of the law are: