Former state Senate President Mike Haridopolos has found an unlikely vehicle to make a political comeback by supporting Gov. Rick Scott.
During the ugly primary battle between Scott and then-Attorney General Bill McCollum, Haridopolos, who was the incoming Senate president at the time, was an active participant. Along with Dean Cannon, who was waiting in the wings to become House speaker, Haridopolos steered $1.4 million to McCollums campaign. Haridopolos showed no signs of holding back against Scott during the primary against McCollum. A group affiliated with Haridopolos sent money to Florida First Initiative which ran television ads attacking Scotts record as CEO of Columbia/HCA when that hospital chain was fined $1.7 billion for Medicaid and Medicare fraud. After the primary, Haridopolos quickly fell in line behind Scott, unlike McCollum who refused to endorse the Republican nominee.
Haridopolos found he couldn't manage the Florida Senate and run for the Republican nomination to challenge U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson, D-Fla. Despite strong fundraising, Haridopolos dropped out of the U.S. Senate race and, at the end of the 2011 legislative session, could barely keep the Florida Senate in line despite a veto-proof Republican majority. With questions about Brevard Community College paying $152,000 to Haridopolos for a book on state government, it appeared that Haridopolos star was already fading.
But in recent weeks, Haridopolos has reminded Florida he can remain a major political player. Haridopolos Senate campaign still has $1.3 million in the bank. Reports came out on Monday that, in the second quarter of 2013, Haridopolos Senate campaign sent $25,000 to a group helping Scotts re-election bid.
Besides helping Scott in 2014, Haridopolos is also a key player on the governors team when it comes to finding a new lieutenant governor. Haridopolos is helping with the vetting process. Since Jennifer Carroll resigned the position in March, while there have been some names thrown around by the media, Haridopolos and the other members of Scotts team have shown a good deal of discipline in finding a replacement and not leaking names and short lists to the media. Haridopolos knows a little bit about the process from personal experience. Back in 2006, he was on the short list to be Charlie Crists running mate but Jeff Kottkamp was selected.
Theres a tendency in Tallahassee and in political circles to forget that Haridopolos is only 43 -- easy to understand since he has been a player in the Legislature since getting elected to the Florida House back in 2000. Haridopolos could certainly get a second act and his wife Stephanie, a doctor, is one of the leading health advocates in Central Florida and something of a media figure. With his large war chest, the former Senate president has some options though, with no U.S. Senate election until 2016 and U.S. Rep. Bill Posey, R-Fla., ramping up to run for another term representing the Space Coast in Congress, Haridopolos might have to bide his time a little. As his helping out Scott shows, Haridopolos is prepared to make the most of his time out of the spotlight. While he is no longer in the Legislature, Haridopolos isnt done as a political player in Florida.
Tallahassee political writer Jeff Henderson wrote this analysis exclusively for Sunshine State News.
