Religious right loses one

[Michael Hoover]

>               Central Florida puts 1st Hispanic in state House
>                                       
>                                Scott Maxwell
>                            of The Sentinel Staff
>                                       
>             Published in The Orlando Sentinel on March 10, 1999.
>                                       
>     Democrat Anthony Suarez became Orange County's first Hispanic state
>    legislator Tuesday by defeating a conservative Christian in a heavily
>                             Republican district.
>                                       
>    Suarez was elected in House District 35 in a special election for the
>    seat vacated by Republican Bob Brooks, who left to become secretary of
>         the Department of Health in Gov. Jeb Bush's administration.
>                                       
>    The vote marked a rare chance for local Democrats to gain back a seat
>      in a district with nearly 20 percent more registered Republicans.
>                                       
>    "No one thought this was possible. Not even my own party in the early
>     stages," an excited Suarez said Tuesday night. "We've been battling
>     for this for so long. I'm just disappointed we didn't win by more."
>                                       
>    Suarez, originally from Puerto Rico, won about 51 percent of the vote
>      to beat Jerry Creel, who had 46 percent. Libertarian Janet Hawkins
>       received about 3 percent of the votes cast in the district that
>         stretches across east Orange and southern Seminole counties.
>                                       
>       Evelyn Rivera, the vice chairwoman of Orange County's Democratic
>    Party, said the victory demonstrated the rising power and influence of
>                        Hispanics in Central Florida.
>                                       
>    "It says that we are here in this community, that we want to be a part
>           of it -- and that we can go out and vote," Rivera said.
>                                       
>           Democrats conducted an intense campaign that focused on
>    Spanish-speaking radio stations and door-to-door stops to give Suarez,
>     45, a lawyer who lives in east Orange, the victory over Creel, 48, a
>                               Baptist pastor.
>                                       
>      Democrats also gambled heavily on the power of absentee ballots in
>      this race where turnout was low at around 16 percent. It was a bet
>     that paid off, since nearly three-fourths of the absentee votes went
>                              in Suarez's favor.
>                                       
>     Before the absentee totals came in, Suarez was losing the election.
>        But absentee ballots, many of which Democrats had urged their
>      supporters to mail in, constituted more than a third of the total
>                                 votes cast.
>                                       
>     If the victory symbolized the up-and-coming status of Hispanics, it
>     also showed that the Democratic Party is not as out of the political
>                  scene as some have suggested, Rivera said.
>                                       
>    "We're still here. We're still alive. We're still kicking," she added.
>                                       
>      Doug Head, the party's leader in Orange County, said the race also
>        suggested that President Clinton's impeachment process and the
>      Republicans who led the charge against him went a long way toward
>                    turning voters away from Republicans.
>                                       
>     "This race shows that hard work at the local level can make all the
>    difference," Head said. "And it also shows that it helps to have [U.S.
>                   Rep.] Bill McCollum on the other side."
>                                       
>    Suarez's campaign played on that sentiment when it sent a last-minute
>     mailer to Democrats that connected Creel with McCollum, R-Longwood,
>                      and independent counsel Ken Starr.
>                                       
>                     Creel was not available for comment.
>                                       
>     Tuesday's race in Orange and Seminole counties and two other special
>      legislative elections were being watched by pundits nationwide who
>     were curious to see what, if any, impact the recent hearings had on
>                         Americans' voting patterns.
>                                       
>      A Republican, Ken Littlefield, won the other special election for
>         House District 61 in Hillsborough and Pasco counties, a seat
>     previously held by his brother. Republican Jim King of Jacksonville
>                              won a Senate seat.
>                                       
>     Suarez's victory means that Democrats picked up a seat in the House,
>              although Republicans still hold a 72-48 majority.