Everglades Trust endorses DeSantis
A nationally recognized organization dedicated to protecting the Everglades is endorsing Republican Ron DeSantis for governor.
Besides praising DeSantis, the executive director of the Everglades Trust, Kimberly Mitchell, excoriated the sugar industry, which many environmentalists see as a major culprit in the degradation of the Everglades.
“The Everglades and coastal estuaries couldn’t care less about partisan politics, so the [Everglades] Trust doesn’t. They are in desperate need of a hero — and they found one in Ron DeSantis,” Mitchell said in a written statement Tuesday.
“Floridians have had enough of rhetoric and broken promises from our politicians,” Mitchell said. “We now have a politician who has actually walked the walk and for the millions who depend on a healthy Everglades, and all the critters who call them home, it could not come soon enough.”
The Florida Democratic Party sought to discredit the Everglades Trust.
The endorsement isn’t a surprise.
When he served in Congress, DeSantis’ free-market approach helped make him a foe of federal policy that benefits the sugar industry through price supports designed to limit production and keep the price of sugar high.
Big Sugar is seen by many in the environmental community as the prime cause of environmental problems and the slow pace of Everglades restoration.
Mitchell praised his “track record of standing up to an industry that is physically and politically blocking the reconnection of Lake Okeechobee to the Everglades — Big Sugar.”
Two weeks after the primary, DeSantis toured the Everglades in west Broward and put out a 12-point environmental plan.
Before the primary, the Everglades Trust endorsed DeSantis over his opponent Adam Putnam, who was seen as close to the sugar industry. In the Democratic primary, the Everglades Trust endorsed Gwen Graham, who lost to Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum.
The Florida Conservation Voters has endorsed Gillum, citing his commitment to combatting global climate change. “Andrew will make protecting the Everglades and Lake Okeechobee a priority, work to keep our water clean from toxic algae blooms, and fight to protect Florida's access to clean water sources,” the organization says on its website.
The organization responded to the Everglades Trust endorsement with a statement criticizing DeSantis. “On every environmental issue, from protecting our waters and wetlands to acting on climate, he sides with polluters over people every time. Floridians shouldn’t be fooled by these recent attempts to greenwash himself. He can’t run away from his votes.”
Mitchell, who has been active in Republican politics in the past, is a former member of West Palm Beach City Commission, which was a non-partisan job. In 2015, she lost a race for mayor of the city.
The Democratic Party sought to portray the Everglades Trust endorsement as suspect because the organization’s board chairwoman, Mary Barley, chairs a political group that gave $250,000 to the state Republican Party in September. In August, her group gave $50,000 to DeSantis, who was competing against Putnam at the time.
One of the two other board members, Jon Mills, is a former Democratic speaker of the Florida House. Another board member, Kirk Fordham, served years ago as a top staffer and political strategist for congressional Republicans.