Former U.S. Rep. Sandy Adams said on Tuesday she is looking at running again for Congress in 2016 if U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis decides to run for the Senate seat currently held by U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio. Currently running for the Republican presidential nomination, Rubio is not expected to go for a second term in the Senate and DeSantis is weighing running for the open seat.
Adams made the announcement Monday afternoon when she appeared on Marc Berniers Daytona-based WNDB radio show.
The former congresswoman also told Susnhine State News she was looking at running if DeSantis opts to run for the Senate.
Im exploring the idea, she told SSN on Tuesday.
If she enters the race, Adams will be looking at a far different district than she is accustomed to. A former investigator for the Orange County sheriff's office, Adams was elected to the Florida state House in 2002 and served until 2010, moving up the leadership ladder on various committees.
In 2010, with the backing of former Gov. Sarah Palin, R-Alaska, Adams emerged in a competitive Republican primary to challenge U.S. Rep. Suzanne Kosmas, D-Fla. On Election Day, Adams defeated Kosmas by 20 percent, routing the Democrat in what was a good year for Republicans in Florida and across the nation.
During her time in Congress, Adams was solidly to the right of center, being honored by the American Conservative Union (ACU) in 2012 for being one of the leading conservatives in Congress, even beating then-U.S. Rep. Allen West, R-Fla., a favorite of the tea party movement, in the ACUs ratings.
But despite her time in Tallahassee, in 2012 Adams was hindered by congressional redistricting. She ran against fellow U.S. Rep. John Mica, R-Fla., in a rare primary pitting two incumbents against each other. Despite the new district containing more of her district than Micas, Adams came up on the losing side in the primary. In the August primary, Mica defeated Adams 60 percent to 40 percent.
If she runs for DeSantis' seat, Adams will have to introduce herself to many voters in Northeast Florida who are not familiar with her. Based out of Central Florida during her time in the Florida House, Adams represented parts of Volusia County and other parts of the region during her term in Congress. While parts of Volusia County are included, DeSantis district stretches farther north, all the way to Jacksonvilles suburbs in the northern parts of St. Johns County and branches across the St. Johns River to include Putnam County.
Ed Dean, a senior editor with SSN whose talk-show can be heard on radio stations across Florida, can be reached at ed@sunshinestatenews.com. Follow him on Twitter: @eddeanradio.Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter:@KevinDerbySSN
