In past years, Florida has been considered a "purple state" in elections. But recent elections have shown Democrats are losing momentum in the state, especially in counties like Miami-Dade.
A poll conducted by Democrats in the county was recently revealed by the Miami Herald to have given GOP presidential nominee Donald Trump a 11-point advantage over incumbent Joe Biden. Meanwhile, a voter registration analysis by the newspaper shows that Democrats' advantage over Republicans in Miami-Dade County was cut almost in half from 2019 to 2023.
So maybe it wasn’t such a surprise this month when Florida Democratic Chair Nikki Fried suspended the party’s Miami-Dade chairman, Robert Dempster, who’s been in that seat since 2021.
Fried called it “part of an overall strategy to get Miami-Dade back on track” for Democrats, who have most noticeably been hemorrhaging all-important Latino voters here. She also suspended the Palm Beach County Democratic chair, Mindy Koch, and the chair in Franklin County on Florida’s Panhandle.
READ MORE: Florida Roundup: Nikki Fried wants to 'rebrand' Florida Democratic party
On the South Florida Roundup, WLRN’s Tim Padgett spoke to Fried about her strategy, amid fears that Democrats could lose once-reliable Miami-Dade County.
The chairwoman said that the work that has to be done for the party in Miami-Dade County — from knocking on doors to getting voters registered and recruiting candidate — was not happening.
“In order for us to make sure that [Miami-]Dade County stays blue and continues to move forward and carry Joe Biden into the presidency, we have to make changes,” she said. “And we've seen time and time again… we keep doing the same things over and over again and expect a different result…sometimes leadership means having to make some pretty tough, bold decisions. And unfortunately, that was a decision and a call that I had to make.”
In Dempster's case, there were also some complaints about the mismanagement of party funds. Fried says this was ultimately not what her decision was about. It was more about violations of the party’s bylaws and compliance issues.
“The health of a local party is knowing that they're following the rules, their membership lists, they’re having consistent meetings on a normal basis … And unfortunately, that was just not happening … And if we're ever going to figure out a way to take back the state, fixing the problems in some of these local parties is part of the plan,” said the chairwoman.
But Maria Elena Lopez, the new acting Miami-Dade Democratic Party Chair, publicly objected to Fried’s suspension of Robert Dempster, citing the proximity of this year's elections.
In a statement, she said: “Time is of the essence. Using FDP’s limited resources to undermine the sustained work and the all-important morale of two of the largest Democratic counties in the state will no doubt affect the work that needs to be done in this election year.“
Fried said she took this action because she felt something drastic had to be done to prevent former president Trump and the Republican party win Miami-Dade County.
“In order to fight back and to protect democracy, not just here in the state, but across the country, and frankly, where we are in international politics and the world, we had to make sure that Miami-Dade was on track to be doing the work because when we as Democrats lose, the people lose,” she said.
The Florida Democratic Party will vote to consider the suspension of the three county chairs on Sunday, March 24.
You can listen to the full conversation above or wherever you get your podcasts by searching: The South Florida Roundup.
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