Christian Ziegler and Evan Power Seek GOP Chairman Seat

TALLAHASSEE (FLV) – Two candidates have announced their bid to be the next chairman of the Florida Republican Party following news that current Chairman Joe Gruters will not run for re-election.

The two candidates are current Vice Chairman Christian Ziegler and Chair of Leon County Republican Party Evan Power.

Outgoing Chairman Gruters made voter registration a priority this past election cycle. By working with Gov. Ron DeSantis, he helped in solidifying Florida as a ‘red state’ as the GOP lead in active registered voters has now grown to nearly 360,000 more than Democrats.

Despite Republicans seeing a red wave in the state of Florida for the 2022 midterm election, both candidates agree that there is still work ahead and complacency has no place in the party.

Power, who first announced his run in November, said despite having big victories, there are places the GOP can improve and increase turnout.

I think one of the things we have to focus on and keep people motivated on is we don’t have a majority in every school board, we don’t have a majority in every city commission, or county commission. So we need to win those races because if you look at what Democrats are doing, they’re trying to govern on the local level and un-do what we’re doing on a state level. So we have to emphasize those races and work hard to win majorities on all of those commissions.

Evan Power to Florida’s Voice

Power said he has a plan to bolster the party and continue to build infrastructure so that “we can be prepared for elections when Governor DeSantis isn’t leading our ticket – so that we can have successes continue.”

On his to-do list, he said they must continue raising money for the party itself, build infrastructure, increase training, equip precinct committeemen and women to work their precincts, and increase Republican turnout in the years to come.

Ziegler, who recently threw his hat into the race in December, said that Gruters has done a good job as chairman and that he is ready to fill that seat.

For me, it’s very appealing because obviously I have been vice chairman and have been on the ground helping throughout, but now to be able to take the lead is a passion of mine.

I’m very aggressive. I think until we have every Democrat out of office, our work does not stop. I want to continue to move the state of Florida to the right and continue to make it darker and darker in ruby red and be able to support Governor DeSantis in his legislative agenda. If I could wake up every day and my job is to go after Democrats and stopping the destruction that they are trying to impose on our local community/state/country, that’s a dream job for me.

Christian Ziegler to Florida’s Voice

Ziegler said on his list going forward, the GOP needs to focus on local races, unite as a party and provide a supporting role for DeSantis.

“We have these liberals that get elected in conservative areas and there’s no rhyme or reason to why this should occur,” Ziegler said.

“I know the presidential is going to get the headlines but a lot of times, these local races impact your life even more than what Washington does.”

Ziegler said Republicans need to do a better job at communicating their message.

“Obviously we’re still going to do the grassroots stuff. But also we need to be out there aggressively in every corner of the state getting our messaging out, holding people accountable, mobilizing voters and we can do all that through comms and digital – which is a passion of mine,” Ziegler said.

Democrat and Independent Voters

Florida’s Voice asked both candidates how they plan to reach out to individuals that may be registered Democrat or Independent.

In 2022, according to recent data, 5,325,589 voters were registered as Republicans, 4,969,377 were registered as Democrats, 4,037,098 registered with no affiliation, and 264,802 were registered with minor parties in Florida.

“Independents… 100% we need to talk to because they broke heavily for the Governor and registering them as Republicans will only build on that majority,” Power said.

“When we communicate with Democrats, the message is: Biden administration has failed. Republicans here in Florida have won and I think there is an opportunity to bring some of those Democrats into our party or at least have them vote for us.”

Ziegler said DeSantis laid out a path forward and went after issues that impact the areas Floridians care about.

“We have to expand our reach as much as we can,” Ziegler said.

“These are issues that a lot of politicians stay away from. DeSantis took the lead on that. What happened when he was bold – it allowed citizens to take note and they saw how he was protecting their family. We saw a lot of people switch and vote for Governor DeSantis because of that.”

Ziegler said Democrats and Independents can be pulled in by focusing on kitchen table-type issues.

“We need to lock up our base. We need to make sure they’re out there mobilizing and working but we also need to go after these issues that cross party lines and are common sense,” he said.

The Younger Vote

Both candidates agree that social media is a vital tool for reaching the younger voter.

According to multiple exit polls from the 2022 midterm, younger voters aged 18-29 were more likely to vote for Democrat Charlie Crist than DeSantis.

“Social media and digital are an important part of communication. We need to market on all those platforms to young Republicans and we also need to send a message, spend time on college Republicans and young Republicans and building those clubs so they understand the Republican message is going to make them more successful,” Power said.

“Once they start paying taxes, they’ll realize Republicans have a better plan than Democrats do.”

Ziegler, who has a background in media, said Republicans need to have a presence on all of the social platforms.

“I understand all of those platforms, running ads, showing a presence – the type of content you need. There’s groups out there that do a great job – like Turning Point. They’re out there and you see the content they do that’s very engaging and capturing the youth – there’s no reason why the Republican party can’t do that.” said Ziegler.

The party will meet on Saturday, February 18, 2023 to vote for the next Chairman.