Hardy will show up; Jacquet is AWOL

Al Jacquet does not deserve a third term in the Florida House. Fortunately, voters can choose a promising replacement — Omari Hardy — in the Aug. 18 Democratic primary.

Jacquet once loomed as a potential champion for District 88, which needs and deserves good representation. A Haitian American, he served two terms on the Delray Beach City Commission before his victory to the Florida House of Representatives in 2016.

As his commission tenure went on, however, Jacquet drew criticism for missing key meetings. Controversy continued with his House run four years ago. Jacquet entered voters’ homes to help them fill out absentee ballots, which gave him his margin.

Then in February, the Palm Beach Post reported that Jacquet basically had gone missing. He hadn’t responded to the state about election law violations. He hadn’t maintained a district office for six months. He told a friend that during the 2019 session, he lived for a time in his car.

Jacquet refused to answer questions about his whereabouts. Similarly, he failed to return the Sun Sentinel’s questionnaire and didn’t participate in the Editorial Board interview.

Four Democrats have challenged Jacquet. Philippe Louis Jeune also skipped the interview. So let’s consider the others.

Cedrick Thomas is a former councilman and police officer in Riviera Beach. He wants to “wake up this district.”

But Thomas has his own credibility issues. He has not repaid a roughly $200,000 judgment from 2010 regarding a failed loan for his charter bus company. On the council, he voted himself a $12,000 raise for attending one additional, minor meeting a month.

Sienna Osta is an attorney who works in the Deerfield Beach office of Chartwell Law.

In her questionnaire, Osta correctly notes the impact that a Republican-led Legislature has had on District 88. It has “effectively abandoned those in need of a safety net by allowing whatever safety net did exist to be frayed almost beyond repair.” The pandemic has revealed that damage.

Osta is a promising candidate, but she has no experience in elected office. District 88 needs someone who is as prepared as possible.

That would be Omari

Hardy. He’s a city commissioner in Lake Worth Beach, which is in the heart of District 88.

Hardy understands how Jacquet should have served his constituents even as a member of the minority party. He cites Jacquet’s failure last year to appear before an appropriations committee that was considering a water project for Lake Worth Beach. Hardy also has shown a willingness to stand up for the less fortunate. In March, he challenged Lake Worth Beach’s mayor and city manager on a plan to cut off power to residents with outstanding bills as effects from the COVID-19 pandemic kicked in. Lake Worth operates its own utility system.

A video of the exchange drew nearly four million views. Comments overwhelmingly favored Hardy. More important, the city delayed the cutoffs and took a second look at latepayment fees.

In May, Hardy asked the commission to discuss “systemic racism.” He was outvoted, but persisted, causing the mayor to say, “You have had the floor 80, 90 percent of this meeting, sir.” Hardy responded,

“Apparently very many of you have nothing to say.”

Of the utility issue, Hardy told us, “I didn’t have the votes on my side. I had to shame my colleagues into doing the right thing.” Such an approach might not work as well in Tallahassee, but District 88 residents need more advocacy, not less.

Jacquet must see Hardy as a threat. In February, he used a homophobic slur to describe Hardy, who is not gay. Jacquet sort of apologized, after showing again why he is unfit to serve.

The winner of this primary will face Republican Danielle Madsen and independent Rubin Anderson in November.

We disagree with Hardy’s view that Florida should legalize recreational marijuana. We agree, however, with his comment that Florida’s criminal justice system needs to provide help, not just punishment. The Sun Sentinel recommends Omari Hardy in the Democratic primary for Florida House District 88.

Editorials are the opinion of the Sun Sentinel Editorial Board and written by one of its members or a designee. The Editorial Board consists of Editorial Page Editor Rosemary O’Hara, Dan Sweeney, Steve Bousquet and Editor-in-Chief Julie Anderson.