Florida Republicans have sent out a series of transphobic campaign mailers in recent weeks targeting state House District 65 candidate Ashley Brundage, who could become the state’s first transgender lawmaker if elected next month.
The mailers call Brundage — an entrepreneur and activist who won the Democratic primary in August with 81% of the vote — “extreme,” “radical” and “out-of-touch with Tampa.” Several also advise she “is a biological man” who “is more than meets the eye.”
The attacks were financed by the Florida House Republican Campaign Committee, which fundraises “to keep Florida free.” They say they are “committed to electing passionate, conservative leaders to the Florida House of Representatives.”
The mailers were also approved by state Rep. Karen Gonzalez Pittman, Brundage’s incumbent opponent who is a part of Florida’s anti-LGBTQ+ Republican supermajority. She is among the lawmakers who supported SB 254, which bans gender-affirming care for transgender minors and restricts it for adults, and other anti-LGBTQ+ legislation like the expansion of “Don’t Say Gay or Trans.”
“Gonzalez Pittman voted to give parents the final say about what medical procedures their children receive and what they learn at school,” one mailer reads. It also notes that she is a mother — as is Brundage — who will “always fight for Parental Rights.”
Another attack sent via text likened Brundage to a “Category 5 Financial Hurricane” that would “create a financial disaster for Florida’s families.” Brundage’s campaign condemned the assertion after Hurricane Helene’s unprecedented storm surge in Tampa Bay, releasing a statement Oct. 3 ahead of Hurricane Milton. The storm further devastated the region Oct. 9.
“At a time when so many families across Tampa Bay are still in shock and grieving from the loss of their homes and belongings, it is beyond offensive … to mock financial hardship,” she said. “I know the pain these families are going through because, just like too many Floridians, I have faced financial struggles — bankruptcy, foreclosure and the constant worry about keeping a roof over my head.”
“For the Republicans to compare me to a Category 5 hurricane when our community is still reeling from a real disaster is appalling,” she added. “Floridians deserve solutions, not attacks.”
The Democrat says the same is true of the anti-LGBTQ mailers, which she expects will continue until the election. Brundage calls the attacks “a perfect example of focusing on culture war issues” instead of addressing matters voters care about.
If elected, Brundage promises to address Florida’s “affordability crisis that is robbing the futures of far too many working families and seniors.” She also says she will stand up to attacks on reproductive rights and advocate for small businesses.
Becoming the state’s first transgender lawmaker, something Tampa Bay’s Nathan Bruemmer could also do if elected in District 61, would also send a strong message to the travel and tourism industry that Florida “is safe and open for business,” she notes.
“While LGBTQ+ rights won’t be a centerpiece of my political aspirations … I just have to show up to send that message,” Brundage says. “Being visible in Tallahassee will change the whole scope of how we’re treated and legislated for or against.”
Watermark reached out to Karen Gonzelez Pittman and the Florida House Republican Campaign Committee but received no response.
Watermark courtesy of the National LGBTQ Media Association.
