Thompson, Martínez are best candidates to represent Orange County districts
Voters will pick representatives in two south Orange County seats in the state House this fall.
One is held by a longtime incumbent, the other is a seat that became open when Rep. Amy Mercado ran for Orange County property appraiser.
Here are the Editorial Board’s recommendations in those two races:
House District 44
Geraldine Thompson was in the news recently. Not in her capacity as a member of the Florida House but in her capacity as a Floridian who believes the state’s governor should follow the state’s constitution.
Thompson filed a lawsuit challenging Gov. Ron DeSantis’ appointment of a new Florida Supreme Court justice who wasn’t qualified under the Florida Constitution. Her case went to the Supreme Court, which ruled unanimously that DeSantis had, in fact, violated the constitution with his appointment.
Score one for Thompson, a fearless Democratic lawmaker who’s served in the state Senate and now in the House, and who deserves another term serving District 44.
Thompson is right on many of the issues this Editorial Board cares about: Expanding Medicaid so more people who don’t make a living wage can afford health insurance.
Allowing local governments to govern without the nanny state finding new ways to bend cities and counties to their will. And improving unemployment benefits so people who lose their jobs
through no fault of their own aren’t ruined while they search for work.
In fact, she’s one of the few candidates running who was in the Legislature in 2011 and isn’t trying to walk back their support of the Rick Scott-led overhaul of the unemployment system. Thompson voted against it then as a House member.
Thompson’s Republican opponent is Bruno Portigliatti, who runs an assisted living facility in Orlando and is president of a private Christian university.
We didn’t recommend Portigliatti in the Republican primary because his positions were so doctrinaire. For example, his website says this about taxes: “The government should only collect enough tax to meet the requirements for its essential functions, which include maintenance of national security and basic infrastructure and protection of the citizens against criminals.”
Considering national security is a federal function, his written statement of belief still boils down to Florida paying for roads and law enforcement and that’s it.
In an interview, he tried to sand down those sharp edges, saying, “We do have to have programs in place to protect people.”
He doesn’t have any interest in expanding Medicaid, oddly contending people need the “dignity of private insurance,” as if current recipients lack dignity. The problem is, many people don’t qualify for Medicaid and can’t afford private insurance. On unemployment, he seems genuinely outraged at its shortcomings but would only commit to “look at” increasing the maximum weekly benefit, which is $275. That’s not a commitment, that’s an escape hatch.
Thompson has been an able and passionate representative of her southwest Orange County House district. Given her competition, there’s no reason for voters to change directions.
House District 48
Democrats made a huge mistake in the primary.
Passing over a couple of excellent prospects, notably a smart, rising young star in Samuel Vilchez Santiago, they instead chose Daisy Morales as their candidate in the general election.
The same Daisy Morales who, after getting elected as an Orange County Soil & Water Conservation District supervisor, missed meeting after meeting.
Her excuse will go down in the annals of political absurdity: Morales said she tried to attend
by phone but no one answered. So she yelled into the phone.
We would have asked her about this and her positions on the issues, but Morales ducked our candidate interviews for both the primary and the general election.
She wouldn’t talk to a Sentinel news reporter, either.
This is the person Democrats chose in District 48, a district where Democrats outnumber Republicans by nearly 3-1. It’s a virtual lock, and Democrats wasted the opportunity.
Voters have an alternative in Republican Jesús Martínez.
He’s a decent man with a compelling life story. Born in Puerto Rico, where he attended college, Martínez came to Orlando in 2001.
He learned English, got a law degree from Barry University and now works in real estate. He’s also a Church of God pastor.
Martínez says he wants better benefits for unemployment recipients and understands the dismal state of affordable housing stock in an area where serviceclass workers desperately need affordable housing.
He says he’s for more oversight of private schools that receive public money through education tax vouchers.
He’s on the right side of some key issues and seems driven by a genuine desire to help less fortunate.
He’s the better of the two candidates in this race, easily.
Morales’ candidacy once again reminds us that the Soil & Water Conservation District boards are useless relics of the past, too often serving as steppingstones for people with political ambitions.
One of these days, a Legislature that’s always looking to reduce the size of government will realize it could get rid of an entire layer by eliminating Soil & Water districts statewide.
We doubt anyone would notice
Until then, we think voters in District 48 should leave Morales where she is, yelling at phones, and send Jesús Martínez to Tallahassee instead.
Election endorsements are the opinion of the Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board, which consists of Opinion Editor Mike Lafferty, Jennifer A. Marcial Ocasio, Jay Reddick, David Whitley and Editor-in-Chief Julie Anderson. Sentinel Columnist Scott Maxwell participates in interviews and deliberations. Send emails to insight@orlandosentinel.com. Watch interviews with these and other candidates at OrlandoSentinel.com/interviews.