The Tea Party is a ballot-qualified party in Florida. Three candidates filed in the Florida Tea Party’s primary for U.S. House.
In the 8th district, which includes much of Orlando, the Tea Party candidate is Peg Dunmire. The 8th district is a swing district which elected a Republican in 2006 but a Democrat, Alan Grayson, in 2008.
In the 12th district, centered on Polk County in interior Florida, the Tea Party candidate is Randy Wilkinson. This is a safe Republican district.
In the 25th district, which includes the southwestern corner of the state as well as western Dade County, the Tea Party candidate is Roly Arrojo. The Republican incumbent, Mario Diaz-Balart, won in 2008 by a fairly close margin, 130,891 to 115,820 for the Democratic nominee, Joe Garcia. Thanks to Darcy Richardson for this news.
It amazes me that anyone would associate with a minor party that got it’s name by hijacking it from a popular movement. Unlike the Tea Party political party the real Tea Party Movement is a grassroots movement encouraging voter education and smaller government. The fringe political figures that are the backers of the political third party Tea Party are anything but grassroots. They’ve been around in politics long enough to have alienated themselves from the main political scene. There attempt at using the tea party name underscores their contempt for the voters. Any candidate they field will be stigmatized by there unethical actions and relegated to the roll of spoiler. The Tea Party candidates and their party backers know they have no chance of winning maybe spoiler is their actual goal so the progressive liberal politicians will win again.
Maxa is certainly entitled to their opinion – however misguided.
The TEA PARTY by fielding three (3) tea party activists for the US Congress has clearly reached the big leagues. Just because you personally don’t want to actually vote for tea party believers doesn’t negate the TEA PARTY or their candidates. Mr. Wilkinson has spoken at several of our tea parties and is a staunch conservative who believes in God and the Constitution. Randy has won 4 county-wide elections in a row.
He’s a true believer. You don’t own the words “tea party” and neither does anyone else.
The TEA PARTY in Florida is legally sanctioned and authorized by the State of Florida to run candidates and from the looks of things – there are going to be dozens more.
It’s a great day for America that tea party activists are shedding the corrupt Republican and Democrat parties to return to what our Founders wanted – no parties and true Patriots running on their own name, not a corrupt party label.
Tampa, Look up the word Corrupt in the dictionary and you’ll find a picture of Fred O’Neal the head of the Political Tea Party, he owes the IRS $150,000 and has supported Obama and Grayson as a Democrat. Right beside him you’ll see his buddy Doug Guetzloe. Guetzloe reportedly has a sordid past and has developed a reputation as being an opportunist and a profiteer and has been suspended by the Republican party along with his other buddy Nick Egoroff. All three are the prime movers of the Political Tea Party. Great bunch of guys you have there. With this bunch as heads of your party how can you not realize that their corruption and slime has rubbed of on your candidates and they are nothing but spoilers.
Funny, this group here in Nevada that dares call itself the “Tea Party” is running a candidate that owes 200,000$ to the IRS, quite a coincidence.
And also the leaders of the Tea Party movement here have rejected and ran ads denouncing this man and his party, which only shows these groups are not necessarily legit third parties, but wolves in sheep’s clothing.
In a manner of speaking, the term ‘Tea Party’ has become exactly like the term ‘Socialist’…a word used to oversimplify and lump together many organizations that appear the same to those who don’t care to acknowledge the diversity of the movement.
Well, they appear to have at least one elected official…
http://dailycaller.com/2010/05/03/florida-candidate-becomes-first-officeholder-with-tea-party-affiliation-but-analysts-say-media-exaggerates-third-party/