Latino
Hispanic Heritage Month Spotlight: Elected Officials Representing All or Part of Orange County
Published
5 years agoon
By
Willie DavidORLANDO, Fla. (FNN NEWS) – Each year, Americans observe National Hispanic Heritage Month from September 15 to October 15 by celebrating the histories, cultures and contributions of American citizens whose ancestors came from Spain, Mexico, the Caribbean, and Central and South America.
On the final day of 2018 Hispanic Heritage Month we spotlight federal, state, county and city Hispanic elected officials who represent all or part of Orange County.
UNITED STATES GOVERNMENT
Office of United States Senator of Florida Marco Rubio
- The Honorable Marco Rubio (R)
- US Senator of Florida
- Elected 2011 (6-year terms)
- United States Senate, United States Government
- Representing all of Orange County
Office of US Congressman Darren Soto
- The Honorable Darren Soto (D)
- US Congressman, District 9
- Elected 2016 (2-year terms)
- United States House of Representatives, United States Government
- Representing part of Orange County
STATE OF FLORIDA
Office of Lieutenant Governor of Florida Carlos Lopez-Cantera
- The Honorable Carlos Lopez-Cantera (R)
- Lieutenant Governor of Florida
- Elected 2014 (4-year terms)
- Office of Lieutenant Governor of Florida, State of Florida
- Representing all of Orange County
THE FLORIDA SENATE
Office of District 15 State Senator Victor M. Torres, Jr.
- The Honorable Victor M. Torres, Jr. (D)
- State Senator, District 15
- Elected 2016 (4-year terms)
- The Florida Senate, State of Florida
- Representing part of Orange County
FLORIDA HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES
Office of District 30 State Representative Robert “Bob” Cortes
- The Honorable Robert “Bob” Cortes (R)
- State Representative, District 30
- Elected 2014 (2-year terms)
- Florida House of Representatives, State of Florida
- Representing part of Orange County
Office of District 48 State Representative Amy Mercado
- The Honorable Amy Mercado (D)
- State Representative, District 48
- Elected 2016 (2-year terms)
- Florida House of Representatives, State of Florida
- Representing part of Orange County
Office of District 49 State Representative Carlos Guillermo Smith
- The Honorable Carlos Guillermo Smith (D)
- State Representative, District 49
- Elected 2016 (2-year terms)
- Florida House of Representatives, State of Florida
- Representing part of Orange County
Office of District 50 State Representative Rene “Coach P” Plasencia
- The Honorable Rene “Coach P” Plasencia (R)
- State Representative, District 50
- Elected 2014, 2016 (2-year terms)
- Florida House of Representatives, State of Florida
- Representing part of Orange County
NINTH JUDICIAL CIRCUIT OF FLORIDA
Office of Ninth Judicial Circuit Court Judge Jose R. Rodriguez
- The Honorable Jose R. Rodriguez
- Circuit Judge
- Orange County Circuit Court
- Elected to Circuit Court 1994 (6-year terms), Elected to County Court 1987 (6-year terms)
- Ninth Judicial Circuit of Florida, State of Florida
- Representing all of Orange County
Office of Ninth Judicial Circuit Court Judge Leticia Marquez
- The Honorable Leticia Marquez
- Circuit Judge
- Orange County Circuit Court
- Elected 2012 (6-year terms)
- Ninth Judicial Circuit of Florida, State of Florida
- Representing all of Orange County
ORANGE SOIL AND WATER CONSERVATION DISTRICT
Office of Orange Soil and Water Conservation District 2 Supervisor Daisy Morales
- The Honorable Daisy Morales (D)
- Supervisor, Seat 2
- Vice Chair, Board of Supervisors
- Elected 2014 (4-year terms)
- Orange Soil and Water Conservation District, State of Florida
- Representing all of Orange County
ORANGE COUNTY
Office of District 5 Orange County Commissioner Emily Bonilla
- The Honorable Emily Bonilla (D)
- County Commissioner, District 5
- Elected 2016 (4-year terms)
- Board of County Commissioners, Orange County Government
- Representing part of Orange County
ORANGE COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD
Office of District 2 Orange County School Board Member Daryl Flynn
- The Honorable Daryl Flynn (D)
- School Board Member, District 2
- Elected 2006, 2014 (4-year terms)
- Orange County Public Schools, Orange County Government
- Representing part of Orange County
CITY OF ORLANDO
Office of District 2 Commissioner Tony Ortiz
- The Honorable Tony Ortiz (R)
- City Commissioner, District 2
- Elected 2008 (4-year terms)
- City of Orlando, City Government
- Representing part of Orange County
TOWN OF OAKLAND
Office of Seat 3 Commissioner Salvador Ramos
- The Honorable Salvador Ramos
- Town Commissioner, Seat 3
- Appointed 2015, Elected 2016 (3-year terms)
- Town of Oakland, Town Government
- Representing part of Orange County
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Don Quijote Awards
PHOTOS: The Complete 25th Don Quijote Awards Winners List
Published
1 year agoon
December 11, 2022ORLANDO, Fla. (FNN) – The Don Quijote Awards, presented by the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Metro Orlando and Prospera, is Central Florida’s premier business awards gala with good reason.
The black-tie gala, which celebrates the Hispanic business community by recognizing small business owners as well as business and community leaders who help propel the Hispanic business community forward, filled Epcot’s Showplace Pavilion with well over 1,000 formally dressed attendees for its 25th anniversary Saturday.
The prestigious ceremony recognizes companies and individuals in six categories:
- Hispanic Business of the Year, 5 Years or Less
- Hispanic Business of the Year, Over 5 years
- Professional of the Year
- Excellence Award
- Hispanic Community Champion (this award is given to a non-Hispanic who avidly works to support and strengthen the Hispanic community)
- Lifetime Achievement Award
The 2022 Don Quijote Award Winners
Hispanic Business of the Year, 5 Years or Less: Guacamole Mexican Grill
Hispanic Business of the Year, Over 5 years: SkyBuilders USA
Professional of the Year: Luis Nieves-Ruiz, Economic Development Director, East Central Florida Regional Planning Council
Excellence Award: Former State Representative Bob Cortes,
Senior Government Affairs Administrator, Seminole County Sheriff’s Office
Hispanic Community Champion: Dr. James Michael Burkett, President, Florida Technical College
Lifetime Achievement Award: Modesto Alcala,
Senior VP of Global Restaurant Development and Placemaking for Universal Creative at Universal Parks & Resorts
___________________________________________________________
Mellissa Thomas is Editor for Florida National News. | mellissa.thomas@floridanationalnews.com
Latino
Lt. Governor Nominee Karla Hernández’s ‘Latinas for Choice’ Tour Kickoff Lacks Hispanic Women Leaders
Published
2 years agoon
September 8, 2022By
FNN NEWSORLANDO, Fla. (FNN) – Karla Hernández, Democratic nominee for Lieutenant Governor of Florida, held a press conference outside of Orlando City Hall to announce the campaign’s Latinas For Choice tour Wednesday morning.
Hernández was joined by five progressive activists, including Orange County School Board Member Johnna Lopez, State Representative Anna Eskamani and former State Representative District 48 candidate Samuel Vilchez Santiago.
The following Orange County Hispanic women elected leaders did not attend Hernandez’s Latinas for Choice announcement:
- Florida State Representative Daisy Morales
- Orange County District 3 Commissioner Mayra Uribe
- Orange County District 4 Commissioner Maribel Gomez Cordero
- Orange County District 5 Commissioner Emily Bonilla
- Orange County Property Appraiser Amy Mercado
- Orange County Soil & Water Conservation District Supervisor Raquel Lozano
While the campaign tour is just launched and in its infancy, the press conference showcased a humble beginning in terms of support for a major support. It appeared that no Spanish-speaking news outlets were present to cover the announcement. Local media outlets WESH 2, WFTV Channel 9 and Florida National News were the outlets present.
Two of the six individuals at the podium being men, and one being a young student. The total number of Latinas, then, was three–if the young lady is included in the count.
However, there may be a reason for that.
New Poll Shows a Different Priority Among Latino Voters
The Palm Beach Post reported findings from a recent poll which showed that 70% of Florida Hispanics oppose making abortion illegal, but it’s not their biggest issue. According to the Post, a large majority of Florida Hispanic voters believe it’s wrong to make abortion illegal, even if it goes against their personal beliefs. Here’s the breakdown of what Hispanic voters in the poll feel are “the most important issues that elected officials should address”:
- Inflation/rising cost of living (53%)
- Crime/gun violence (38%)
- Jobs/economy (36%)
- Healthcare (21%)
- Climate/environment (16%)
Abortion, at 15%, tied with a lack of affordable housing/high rents and Social Security and Medicare.
When asked about this during the press conference, Hernandez assured that Charlie Crist, assuming he’s elected governor in November, would prioritize legislation addressing the top three priorities listed in the poll. Watch the livestream of the full press conference above.
Latino
VIDEO: Morales Campaign Drops Rita Harris’s F-Bomb-Laced Tirade Targeting Bernie Sanders and Progressive Supporters
Published
2 years agoon
August 21, 2022By
FNN NEWSORLANDO, Fla. (FNN) – The Daisy Morales campaign released a video over the weekend of opponent Jennifer “Rita” Harris‘s profanity-laced tirade against U.S. Senator Bernie Sanders and his progressive supporters on Harris’s Medium blog account.
Harris has deleted the account.
The Morales campaign brought the receipts in this press release, with screenshots from Harris’s Medium blog account and various Facebook posts.
Morales’s campaign pointed out the irony of Harris’s attack on Sen. Bernie Sanders and his supporters and her current backing by the progressive arm of the Democratic Party, United for Progress, Ruth’s List Florida, and other progressive groups.
The Morales campaign slammed Harris in the press release saying “she cannot be trusted, is unfit to serve in public office, and isn’t safe around children younger than 13 years old when it comes to vulgar language, dubbing herself a “part time a**hole” on her Medium blog account (which, by the way, has now been taken down).”
Harris’s Medium post, “Be Gone Bernie Sanders, and Take Your Little Bots Too,” attacks Bernie Sanders and his progressive supporters with a slew of profanities. The campaign warns that viewers will need earbuds to view the video, which is an almost seven-minute voice-to-text read-along of the blog post.
The Morales campaign continued its attack, followed by several screenshots of Harris’s Facebook posts containing F-bombs: “Tallahassee lawmakers are expected to represent the people of our districts and the state of Florida with dignity and respect. Not everything has to be a vulgar attack. Anger must be controlled. And Harris seems to have a lot of it—minus the control.
“Her social media posts are riddled with F-bombs, whether they are friendly or contentious.”
The Morales campaign ended the video drop by saying, “This is the real Jennifer “Rita” Harris.”
The Morales Campaign Triples Down on Harris’s Business Background
Following the video drop, the Morales campaign again highlights Harris’s business background, referring to the Orlando Sentinel’s most recent article with Harris finally opening up about her business background.
The press release says in relevant part:
“If all that wasn’t enough, Harris isn’t forthcoming about her business background. She kept that information from the voters and from the media. Her campaign never listed her business background, and the voters have a right to know. She admitted herself to the Orlando Sentinel in a recent article that she only lists herself as a CEO of her husband’s company, Harris Cloud Consulting, on LinkedIn “for networking purposes.” Why is that deception necessary? There’s nothing wrong with being a housewife promoting your husband’s company on his behalf.
“It turns out Harris Cloud Consulting isn’t the first company she’s been listed as the CEO for. She was the CEO of Kronos Unlimited, LLC, a failed business dissolved by the State. This looks like a pattern. She’s essentially a fake CEO. It’s also interesting that the Orlando Sentinel learned of her deception after they endorsed her.
“If she’s being deceptive here and now, what’s to stop her from doing it in Tallahassee? What else is she being dishonest about? (Besides the work address for one of the companies they registered in Florida using a non-Florida address and zip code.)”
Morales Campaign Also Doubles Down on Lack of Vetting on Harris
“All of this foolishness speaks loudly to the lack of a real background check on the part of the people and organizations endorsing Harris, like the Democratic establishment and high profile Democrats like Charlie Crist, State Attorney Monique Worrell, State Senators Victor Torres and Jason Pizzo, and School Board Member Johanna Lopez, just name a few,” said Rep. Morales in the press release.
“There are Democratic candidates in other Florida races that organizations and elected officials have had to rescind their endorsements from because they failed to do their research. State Rep. Anna Eskamani warned Florida Democrats of that recently concerning the Ag Commissioner race.”
Rep. Morales went on to say that Harris’s titles as Orange County Democratic Party Vice Chair and founder and former President of the Democratic Women’s Club of South Orange County don’t exempt her from a thorough background check, saying that even those running for US President have to undergo rigorous scrutiny. “It seems like in this race, many turned a blind eye to Harris’s history.”
Morales ends the press release by expressed gratitude for “the concerned voters that brought this to my campaign’s attention.”
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