Mike Grissom, a veteran GOP operative, is a leading candidate to be the state Republican Party's new executive director, informed sources tell Sunshine State News.
Though newly elected RPOF Chairman Dave Bitner declined to list the applicants, Republican sources close to the party identified Grissom and Andy Palmer as front-runners for the job.
Grissom, an RPOF operative, helped to manage the party's meeting in Orlando last weekend when Bitner topped four rivals to succeed John Thrasher as state chairman.
Grissom's Florida work includes stints with John McCain's presidential campaign and former U.S. Rep. Ric Keller, R-Orlando.
Previously, Grissom was Michigan Victory director at the Republican National Committee and Victory director for the Kentucky Republican Party. He attended the University of Central Florida and served as treasurer of the Florida Association of State Troopers.
"He's a good guy and knows the ground game," said one GOP insider who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Palmer is the RPOF's Florida House campaign director. His efforts helped the party pick up enough seats to reach a supermajority in the state House.
Sources said they would be "surprised" if current Executive Director Ronnie Whitaker stayed on. Whitaker was brought in by Thrasher last year after Chairman Jim Greer and Executive Director Delmar Johnson were finally ousted.
Despite the party purge, many rear-guard loyalists stayed on -- Grissom and Palmer among them.
Both Grissom and Palmer actively supported Attorney General Bill McCollum's bid for the gubernatorial nomination against insurgent Rick Scott.
"Grissom is not a Scott guy," said a Tallahassee political strategist speaking on background. "He did grass-roots work for McCollum."
And Bitner's comments to Sunshine State News suggest that he's not exactly tight with the new governor, either.
Responding to suggestions that Scott might get involved in vetting or selecting the party's new executive director, Bitner said, "I haven't heard from Rick Scott."
When asked about Whitaker, Bitner replied that he would be interviewed "like everyone else."
Scott kept a low profile during the chairman's race, giving no binding instructions to his 10 voting delegates.
One of the GOP insiders said Scott's hands-off approach was both smart and necessary for an outsider still distrusted by party functionaries.
"The activists can make you look foolish, and they were aching for Scott to misstep," this person said.
Karl Zimmermann, a state committeeman from Indian River County, seconded that observation.
"[Charlie] Crist's relationship with Greer was a disaster. Scott was smart enough to know it was bad karma to get involved in the chairman election," Zimmermann said.
If Scott had any expectation that the executive director position would go to one of his few allies in the party, those hopes look like a long shot now.
Scott's office declined to comment. Grissom, Palmer and Whitaker did not return messages.
Whoever lands the executive director job will be on the hot seat in what is shaping up to be one of the most crucial election cycles in Florida history.
With the 2012 Republican National Convention coming to Tampa, and Florida rated as a "must win" for any GOP presidential candidate, the state will once again be in the global spotlight.
Said one political consultant: "The No. 1 job of the executive director will be to close the gap on voter registration (vs. the Democrats) and organize the coalitions."
Those coalitions include the tea parties, which were instrumental in energizing Scott's campaign and beating down party favorite McCollum.
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Contact Kenric Ward at kward@sunshinestatenews.com or (772) 801-5341.
