Carlos Guillermo Smith talks about running for the Florida Senate in 2024
ORLANDO, Florida. Former Democratic Rep. Carlos Guillermo Smith has set his sights on the 2024 election.
Smith made history in 2016 when he became the first openly gay Hispanic elected to the Florida Legislature.
After serving three terms, he lost his bid for re-election during last year’s midterm elections by four points, in part because Governor Ron DeSantis’ redistricting map displaced his former district to include portions of eastern Seminole County, which is leaning to the Republicans.
Smith, though, hopes his time away from Tallahassee will be short-lived as he applied for the Florida Senate’s 17th district, a position currently held by Senator Linda Stewart (D), who is unable to run again. due to time limits.
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He joined host Justin Warmot on The Weekly to talk about his 2024 campaign.
“We deserve to have champions in Tallahassee who care about people, but also care about solving real problems,” Smith said. “We need a new legislature that isn’t obsessed with culture wars and solving problems that don’t exist. That’s why I’m running. I was born and raised in Florida. I love my community, I love this state, and I don’t want to give it up.”
Watch the full interview in the video player above.
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