Orange County, Fla. – There’s a common saying on social media. It’s an acronym: IYKYK, meaning If You Know, You Know. By now, voters in Orange County should know that there’s a Special Election today, Tuesday, Sept. 2 and know if they are eligible to vote. If not, now you know and you can tell your family members and neighbors: Go Vote. Polls will be open from 7 a.m. until 7 p.m.
It’s been in the news since February upon the passing of Florida Senator Geraldine Thompson that there would be a Special Election to fill her seat. A Democratic Party Special Primary Election was held in June, and the winners will face off against their Republican counterparts in the election today. Yes, it’s an odd election day because most elections are held in the Fall (November) or Spring (March) but this is a Special Election, and voters can still participate in the process.
Voters will decide whom they want to fill the vacancy for state senate District 15 (Thompson’s seat) and state house District 40, held by outgoing Representative LaVon Bracy Davis who resigned to run for the senate seat. Bracy Davis, who won the Democratic Primary, is running against Republican non-profit founder Willie J. Montague and her former chief of staff, RaShon Young, who won the Democratic Primary, is running against Republican engineer Tuan Le and a write-in candidate.
Senate District 15 covers a huge chunk of the county including parts of Orlando, Winter Garden, Ocoee and Apopka, and many large communities in between. The House District 40 is situated within the senate district, including communities such as College Park, Lockhart, Rosemont and Pine Hills.
In a recent interview, I asked Bracy Davis what it would take for her to win the seat. She said for her to do what any good candidate does, and she has done that: “I have knocked on doors [20,000 doors or homes]. I have sent out mailers for the primary and for this election. I’ve made four to five appearances a day, raising awareness about voting.”
Winning Thompson’s seat would fulfill a desire the senator had for Bracy Davis to take her seat whenever she retired, according to Bracy Davis and Thompson’s immediate family members in recent news reports.
Although the district is a Democratic leaning one, Bracy Davis said she will continue to run the race as if she’s in last place which is what her campaign manager, her mother, LaVon Wright Bracy, advised her to do.
Bracy Davis said she felt a little humbled by the opportunity to take the senate seat because Thompson was not only her mentor professionally but a family friend for more than 50 years. “Just the thought that I can literally walk the trail that was blazed by a champion.
“I’m ready to work, to serve, to complete some of the work she started.”
Bracy Davis said if elected, she will spend several weeks diving deep into Thompson’s bills. “I feel I owe it to her, ” she said, noting that there are three years remaining of the four-year senate term.
Having been out in the community talking with people, she is aware of people who believe that Florida is unaffordable. Voters, both Democrats and Republicans, are not asking for immigration bills, she said.
I also reached out to Montague for an interview but did not get a direct response. He sent an email highlighting his goals, outlook on the election, immediate concerns for the district and concerns for the state. He also mentioned struggles people are feeling in the current economy.
For the House of Representatives race, I reached out to both candidates on the ballot, Young and Le but only heard back from Young.
While Young is new to actually running for public office, he is not new to working in public office. He said he’s worked on many campaigns, as campaign manager, strategist and volunteer, including with former Florida gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum.
In an interview, Young, 26, said his interest in politics was sparked as a child, living in South Carolina where he is from. “My grandmother always dragged me to NAACP and National Action Network meetings. I used to wonder why I had to go when all the other kids were outside playing. I would always be the youngest person in the room.”
The interest grew and it led him to Bethune Cookman University on a path to law school. He said he had a goal of “protecting our community from a lot of bad laws.” He said he later switched from an English major to a Political Public Relations major. “When I was younger, my grandmother told me I was a Democrat. Through civic engagement on the campus and in the community, I realized I was a Democrat, that my values aligned with the party.”
Young first connected with Bracy Davis, while doing chapel assistant work for BCU’s Concert Chorale. Though Bracy Davis, by way of her father, the late Dr. Randolph Bracy Jr. who was working at BCU at the time, Young and was able to secure performances for the chorale at the Dr. Phillips Center for the Performing Arts in Downtown Orlando. He got an opportunity to work with Bracy Davis at the Dr. Phillips Center and when she decided leave and run for the House of Representatives, she asked him directly what he wanted to do.
“I just recall telling her I wanted to work in the space of helping people and making policy,” Young said, adding that she hired him onto her staff in Tallahassee and he has attended almost every event and meeting she has. He became her Chief of Staff.
If elected to the state house, Young will become the youngest sitting state legislator and the first Gen-Z’er in Florida’s legislature.
“I don’t think it’s a new fight,” he said. “DeSantis is spiraling. He has spent close to a half million dollars on an internment camp in the Everglades. Yes, I am ready to fight. I think the Democrats are still able to win.”
If you have questions about voting in the Special Election today or even registering to vote in future elections in Orange County, contact the elections office: (407) 836-2070.
-Trish Marshall, Founder and Editor, OCN online
Email: orlandocommunitynews@gmail.com
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