Andrew Warren's long quest to regain his job as Hillsborough County's chief prosecutor ran into a wall on Election Day. Warren got a thumbs down in the race for the county's chief prosecutor.
Warren was defeated by his appointed successor, as Suzy Lopez defeated the twice-elected Warren by a vote of 53 to 47%.
Lopez described the past 27 months as being “an incredible journey.”
"And it's culminated tonight with a win, and it's really, it's just, it's emotional," Lopez said at her election watch party at the Hotel Haya in Ybor City. "I'm the first duly elected female state attorney in my hometown, and a win for my office right now is a win for our law enforcement partners, for our community partners, and I can't wait to see what we're going to do in the next four years.”
Lopez, a former judge, was appointed as Hillsborough's state attorney two years ago, after Warren was suspended by Gov. Ron DeSantis. Warren, a Democrat, was removed from office by the Republican governor after he signed a pledge not to prosecute cases related to new state laws on transgender health care and abortion.
Warren said he was still the duly elected head prosecutor who was the victim of a politically motivated move by the Republican governor.
“I'm proud of the race we ran. The best candidate doesn't always win, especially when the other side cheats — illegally suspending you, then spending millions of dollars lying about you," he said in a statement after the polls closed. "But today's result doesn't change the facts: I made Hillsborough safer, improved the system, and fought for our freedoms and values. I want only what's best for our community, and I hope Ms. Lopez grows into this role to become an effective and independent state attorney—not beholden to the governor or sheriff, but accountable to the people.”
Lopez ran on a law and order platform, saying she's tougher on crime than Warren. Her campaign slogan was "Safer with Suzy," drawing a sharp distinction between her and progressive Warren. She was endorsed by Hillsborough Sheriff Chad Chronister, who appeared in campaign ads with her.
Lopez said a top priority for her over the next four years will be continuing to work with the community and law enforcement to keep Hillsborough County safe, adding that she's most proud of restoring relationships with law enforcement partners.
“And we've done that," she said Tuesday night. "The relationships were broken, and now they're very strong. We've given a voice to victims and their families, and we're holding offenders accountable. If you commit a crime in Hillsborough County, you will be held accountable.”
Among the 100 or so supporters at her watch party in Ybor City were two big names in local law enforcement: former Tampa Police Chief Brian Dugan and former Interim Tampa Police Chief Ruben Delgado. Delgado said Lopez is exactly what this county needed when she first came in.
“She's the right person at the right time. You know, help reduce crime here in the city, and that's what you need in the state attorney. You need somebody who's going to focus on working with law enforcement,” said Delgado.
“Her relationship with Sheriff Chronister, her relationship with the Tampa Police Department, is unmatched," he said. "And that's what you need for a successful public crime reduction strategy in the county.”
Lopez raised $625,000 in campaign contributions, including $1,000 from former state attorney Mark Ober, who Warren defeated in 2016. Warren raised $564,000, including $5,000 from the Florida Democratic Party.
Warren said in January he would not run this year. But that was before a federal appeals court ruled that a lower court should consider Warren's argument that statements he made about hot-button issues such as abortion were political advocacy protected by the First Amendment. A federal judge never ruled on that case, and it is made moot by Tuesday’s elections.
The governor's office said after the 11th U.S. Circuit Court ruling in favor of Warren that it sets a “dangerous precedent” that could permit politically motivated prosecutors to ignore laws they oppose.
Warren said about the federal case, "If we lose, this will potentially render elections across the state of Florida meaningless, because it means that the governor can just suspend from office, whoever he wants, for whatever reason he wants, whenever he wants."
There was no love lost between the two candidates, who had starkly different views on law enforcement.
During a Tampa Tiger Club debate earlier this year, Lopez said this after noting she took an oath to defend the Constitution.
“You may as well just take that oath and quite frankly wipe a dog's rear end with it, because that oath is what we are here to do,” Lopez said. “My predecessor also took that oath (but failed) to prosecute entire categories of crime and (signed) a pledge that he would not prosecute certain categories of crime."
Lopez said at the time this race was about who will keep Hillsborough County safer.
“When I became the state attorney, it was my mission to clean up messes that had been left by my predecessor," Lopez said. "I have rebuilt our relationships with our law enforcement partners. Those relationships were once broken. I've given a voice to victims and their families and I have held offenders accountable.”
