Sun Sentinel Palm Beach Edition
Women, Democrats dominate South Florida congressional delegation
Women and Democrats are about to dominate the South Florida congressional delegation, a sharp shift from a decade ago when men dominated and the two political parties were on equal footing.
Credit, or blame for people who don’t like the change, goes to both a “pink wave” that elected women in November and a “blue wave” that elected more Democrats.
And with Democrats assuming control of the full House of Representatives on Jan. 3, South Florida Democrats will enjoy the clout that comes with being members of the majority party.
5 women
The delegation will include five female members of Congress.
Three are veterans: Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Frederica Wilson, who both represent parts of Broward and Miami-Dade counties, and Lois Frankel who represents much of Palm Beach County.
Two are newcomers: Debbie Mucarsel-Powell and Donna Sha-
lala, both of whom represent parts of Miami-Dade County. Mucarsel-Powell also represents Monroe County.
That’s a gain of one woman: MucarselPowell, who defeated Carlos Curbelo. Shalala is succeeding Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, who is retiring.
The returning men are Ted Deutch and Alcee Hastings, who represent parts of Broward and Palm Beach counties, and Mario-Diaz Balart, whose district includes Miami-Dade, Collier and Hendry counties.
The five women/three men split is a marked change in just a decade. Ten years ago, voters in the same congressional districts sent five men and two women to Washington, D.C.
“The Pink Wave took hold of South Florida this November,” Frankel said by email.
7 Democrats, 1 Republican
From West Palm Beach to Key West, there’s only one Republican from southeast Florida.
Seven of the eight are Democrats.
That’s a major shift, representing both long-term political trends as urban areas in the region trend more Democratic and the blue wave that hit Republicans in 2018.
Democrats picked up two seats in 2018 (going from Curbelo to Mucarsel-Powell and from Ros-Lehtinen to Shalala) that had
been held by Republicans.
Just 12 years ago, in the Congress that took office in January 2007, Democrats and Republicans each had four.
Other Democrats taking office, or continuing, in January are: Deutch, Frankel, Hastings, Mucarsel-Powell Shalala, Wasserman Schultz and Wilson. Diaz-Balart is the lone Republican. “Obviously we’ve [Republicans] lost a lot of clout,” Diaz-Balart said. “That puts more pressure on those of us that are still here.
Committees and clout
The new Democratic dominance could be good for the region, as returning Democrats increase their influence on key committees in a House of Representatives controlled by their party.
Wasserman Schultz is expected to become one of the dozen “cardinals” on the Appropriations Committee. Appropriations subcommittee chairmen are called cardinals because of the enormous influence they exercise over federal spending.
“That’s really, really important for Florida,” Diaz-Balart said. “She’s going to be a cardinal and that’s a big deal for Florida.”
That’s not a net win for South Florida or the state, however. With Diaz-Balart assuming minority status, he’ll lose his position as a cardinal.
Deutch is likely the next chairman of the House Ethics Committee, the panel that investigates allegations of misconduct against members of Congress.
He’s also the likely next chairman of the Foreign Affairs Subcommittee on the Middle East and North Africa — a region important to many in South Florida because its jurisdiction includes Israel. That also represents a substitution of sorts; the outgoing subcommittee chairwoman is the retiring Ros-Lehtinen.
Deutch will continue on the Judiciary Committee, a panel that will handle many of the congressional investigations into President Donald Trump. If there’s a move to impeach Trump, the effort goes through the House Judiciary Committee.
Hastings will continue as a senior member — but in the majority party — on the Rules Committee, and will be a subcommittee chairman. Rules doesn’t generate a lot of headlines, but it’s enormously influential. It’s the panel that the majority party uses to decide what legislation will actually get heard, and voted on, by the full House of Representatives, and can govern many of the terms of debate and amendments that can be considered.
Hastings will also reprise a role he’s held in the past, as chairman of the Commission on Security and Cooperation in Europe, also known as the Helsinki Commission.
New dean
Ros-Lehtinen, who was first elected in a 1989 special election, was one of the most senior members of the House — and the most senior member of Congress from Florida.
With her departure, the most senior member — called the dean — of the delegation is Hastings. He started serving in the House in 1993. He’ll led the state congressional delegation, along with Gulf Coast Republican Vern Buchanan.
Next in Florida seniority after Hastings is Diaz-Balart, who began in 2003. DiazBalart, known for working with Democrats on a bipartisan basis, said the advantage of seniority is the ability to build relationships with colleagues that can translate into potential support for legislation or spending priorities.
Third in Florida congressional seniority will be Wasserman Schultz, whose tenure in Washington started in 2005.
Divided – and united
Even though there are philosophical differences in the state’s 27-member House delegation, Hastings said almost all everyone acts cohesively on state issues.
For example, he said, the full state delegation would hear presentations on pressing environmental issues — blue-green algae, red tied and coral reefs — that unite liberals and conservatives.
“Comity is critical,” Hastings said. He said he and Buchanan have tried to encourage their colleagues who want to get things done how to do so “without hair pulling.”