Florida GOP Rep. Posey abruptly announces retirement
Source: Politico
04/26/2024 03:43 PM EDT
TALLAHASSEE, Florida — Rep. Bill Posey (R-Fla.) abruptly announced on Friday that he will not seek reelection, after initially planning to run for another term.
Posey’s announcement — if made earlier — could have easily attracted a spirited Republican primary, with politicians from the state’s Space Coast region already eyeing the seat once Posey retired. Florida’s 8th congressional district is a solid Republican seat.
Instead the 76-year-old incumbent’s announcement came shortly after qualifying officially ended and after his hand-picked replacement — former state Senate President Mike Haridopolos — had already quietly jumped into the race. In a statement posted online, Posey said that he was “looking forward to another spirited campaign for a final term in office.
However, earlier this week circumstances beyond my control now require me to suspend my re-election campaign.” Posey did not elaborate what caused his turnabout. He’s one of roughly two dozen Republican incumbents not returning to the lower chamber next year — all in safe seats — an unusually high number for a party in the majority.
Read more: https://www.politico.com/news/2024/04/26/florida-bill-posey-retirement-00154658
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I understand how that plays out....
That is... he never intended to serve one more term. But he knew that if he announced his retirement (from this solid-red seat) any earlier - it would spark a contentious primary that his hand-picked successor might not win.
So he instead let people think that he was going to run one more time (ensuring that republicans stayed out of the primary race) and let his first choice (Mike Haridopolos - founder of the so-called "freedom caucus"
know that he was going to get out of the way. Haridopolos was able to get into the race at the last minute without other potential candidates knowing in time... and now he's the only legitimate candidate in the primary (and thus has an unobstructed path into the US House).
