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Leaders of the Hillsborough County Republicans and Democrats, and Young Republicans and Democrats, came together to discuss local, state, and national politics in a forum Friday.
At the political forum Tampa Tiger Bay Club, four participants fielded questions from concerned citizens regarding housing affordability, immigration policy, and more.
But all panelists found common ground in being unhappy with certain aspects of Florida’s Republican leadership.
Hillsborough Democrats representative Hoyt Prindle called out Republican Governor Ron DeSantis for rejecting Medicaid expansion.
“You know, a lot of Republican states with Republican governors and Republican-controlled legislatures have passed Medicaid expansion. This state has not,” Prindle said.
Brittany Lyssy is the president of The Tampa Bay Young Republicans.
Her Sarasota-area house was destroyed during Hurricane Helene, and she’s struggled with flood insurance coverage.
“As I Republican, I can sit here and say that I completely disagree with the Governor and the Florida Legislature with what they have done with insurance in Florida.” Lyssy said.
The Hillsborough County Supervisor of Elections office website shows registered Republicans outnumber Democrats by almost 2,000 in Hillsborough County.
All four leaders, including Hillsborough County Republicans chair Carmen Edmonds, say they’ve heard complaints about the economy from members of the community.
Jackson McMillan is the treasurer for the Tampa Bay Young Democrats.
“My generation has to work twice as hard just to afford the same houses that our parents did at our age. I think only the luckiest of us feel comfortable starting families.” McMillan said.
Also discussed were various bills in the Florida legislature, like one bill banning Pride and other flags on government buildings.
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