As Republicans campaign in the New Hampshire primary ahead of the Jan. 23 election, protesters in Florida react to a potential social media restriction.
DeSantis and Haley campaign against Trump in New Hampshire
Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis and former South Carolina Gov. Nikki Haley look to keep their presidential campaigns alive in New Hampshire after former President Donald Trump’s landslide victory in Iowa.
All three GOP candidates are campaigning in the Granite State tonight. This evening, DeSantis joined the “Never back down” PAC for a town hall in Derry. Nikki Haley is hosting a rally in Rochester. New Hampshire Gov. Chris Sununu is at this event to show his support for Haley.
And later tonight, Trump will be at a campaign event in Portsmouth
According to a new Suffolk University and Boston Globe poll in New Hampshire, Trump continues to dominate.
The former president is leading Haley by 16 points and DeSantis by 45 points.
In this same survey, 87% of respondents say it’s unlikely they will change their mind before the Republican primary on Jan. 23.
President Joe Biden is watching the GOP primary play out.
Biden reacted after Trump won the Iowa caucus by a historic margin.
“You know it’s kind of funny, all these Republican candidates in the primary trying to beat Donald Trump," Biden said. "I’m still the only person to ever beat Donald Trump, and I’m looking forward to doing it again, for the good of this country."
The latest CNN poll of Biden’s approval rating shows him at 36% approval, and 59% of respondents report they disapprove of the job he’s doing as president.
Democrats and Republicans reflect on special election
Florida Democrats are hoping a victory in Central Florida is a sign that the state is returning to its purple roots.
Democrats flipped a red Florida House seat blue Tuesday when Tom Keen won the special election for House District 35 in the Orlando area, narrowly beating his Republican challenger.
He secured 51.3% of the vote while Republican Erika Booth earned nearly 48.7%.
Keen will now fill the seat once held by Fred Hawkins, a Republican.
The results will be made official Friday, then Keen will be sworn into office in Tallahassee.
Keen discussed the results and made the case for how Democrats can get independent voters to vote for them in 2024 in an exclusive interview with Spectrum News.
The chairs of the Florida Democratic Party and the Florida Republican Party are reacting to last night’s special election.
It’s in a district that is pretty evenly split between Republican, Democrat and no party affiliated voters.
Today, Nikki Fried, the chair of the Florida Democratic Party, spoke about the win, saying while Florida Republicans were in Iowa campaigning for DeSantis, Florida Democrats were campaigning in District 35.
“With last night’s victory, Florida Democrats are going into election season with a major boost of momentum," Fried said. "This is the first step at chipping away at the supermajority of the Republican legislature, and taking back Florida. We are going to take back Florida one seat at a time, up and down the ballot, because Florida and her people are worth fighting for."
Republicans won by 11 points the last time an election was held for House District 35 — this time they lost by 3.
That’s a big swing, but it doesn’t put a dent in the Republican supermajority in Tallahassee.
The chair of the Florida Republican Party, Evan Power, responded to Fried’s assertion.
“We just heard Nikki Fried say that this victory for Democrats is a turning point and that they have the momentum at the start of this crucial election year," he said. "Particularly as the governor’s presidential campaign stumbles. Is she right?”
In this District 35 race, Republicans reportedly spent twice as much on this race and still lost. Keen focused on property insurance, affordable housing and abortion rights. The Republican listed her No. 1 priority as “Fighting Joe Biden’s woke agenda.”
Protesters react to proposed social media restrictions for minors
Turning to the latest out of Tallahassee, several protesters spoke out against lawmakers over a bill that would restrict access to social media for teens.
House Bill 1 would force social media companies to use age verification, and kick off any users who are 16 or younger.
The bill is a priority of House Speaker Paul Renner.
Lawmakers in Tallahassee are asking: Do the benefits of social media outweigh any potential risks?
Generation Z is snapping back at Florida lawmakers in opposition to House Bill 1.
“Don’t allow the First Amendment to be infringed in the state of Florida again," Rollins College student Matthew Grocholske said. "The First Amendment rights apply to 15-year-olds as well. Let kids live for Christ’s sake. The generation of social media days no.”
Supporters of the proposal say social media is harmful, especially for a kid’s mental health.
Currently, HB 1 does not let parents decide if their kid can have an account. For Meta, the owner of Facebook and Instagram, that’s a problem.
“One of our primary concerns with HB 1, as currently drafted, is that rather than empowering parents to decide what apps their teen is or is not ready to use, this bill takes that decision-making authority away,” Meta Public Policy Manager Caulder Harvill-Childs said.
Under the bill, every platform would have to verify the user’s age. Moreover, platforms would be required to delete accounts that they reasonably believe could belong to a minor.
Merritt Island Republican Tyler Sirios is the bill sponsor.
“I’m not here to say if social media is good or bad," Sirios said. "What we are saying with this bill is that there are features, and that there is content that is not age appropriate for minors under the age of 16."
Should this bill pass, the law would take effect on July 1.
After that, companies like Facebook and TikTok would have 90 days to enforce it through a third-party age verification process.