Four Republicans seek to fill Randy Fine's District 33 seat in Florida House
What do Melbourne Beach, Malabar, Palm Bay and West Melbourne have in common, in terms of their needs from state government?
That's up to the next winner of the Florida House of Representatives District 33 seat to figure out. The district encompasses much of South Brevard. The representative will receive a $29,697 annual salary and serve two-year terms, with a limit of four terms.
Six candidates — four Republicans and two Democrats — are trying for the seat, currently held by Rep. Randy Fine, R-Melbourne Beach, who cannot seek reelection to the House because of term limits. Fine is running for the Florida Senate District 19 seat. Sen. Debbie Mayfield holds that seat, but can't run for it again because of term limits, so she's running for the House District 32 seat, and faces former U.S. Rep. Dave Weldon in an Aug. 20 primary.
The winner of the Aug. 20 Republican primary for District 33 on Nov. 5 will face the winner of the Aug. 20 Democratic primary between Vernon Mitchell Anderson Jr. and Anthony Yantz. (A separate story will appear in FLORIDA TODAY on the Democratic candidates.)
No Democrat has held the seat in the area that encompasses the current District 33 since Harry C. Goode left office in 1992.
Second Republican runs for District 33: Second Palm Bay Republican enters race for Florida House District 33 seat
The four Republicans running are :
Mike Limongello, 34, of Palm Bay, who lists his primary source of income as Very Technology in Bozeman, Montana.
Logan Luse, 30, of Palm Bay, who was Florida state director of the American Conservation Coalition, a nonprofit that promotes conservation and free-market capitalism. Now, he is working in sales for State Farm Insurance Co.
Monique Miller, 53, of Palm Bay, who is a cybersecurity executive and a member of the Board of Directors of Moms for Liberty.
Erika Orriss, 61, of Melbourne Beach, who is a financial software engineer and project manager, with a master's degree in counseling psychology.
All four point to getting insurance rates and illegal immigration under control as a key issue they'd focus on.
Limongello also stressed fighting inflation.
Luse emphasized preventing frivolous lawsuits and fortifying homes against major storms, as well as cleaning up the Indian River Lagoon.
Miller wants to give local law enforcement authority to deport illegal immigrants, and says insurance companies "must be held accountable for their outrageous rates."
Orriss' main concern is Florida's economy, but she also points to need for improve education and mental health.
Where they stand on the issues
None of the four candidates currently is in elective office. So how can voters tell them apart?
To find out, FLORIDA TODAY asked who they are, what they think are the key issues and what they'd do to address them.
Here's how each responded:
Mike Limongello
"As a state representative, I’m determined to fight illegal immigration as an ally of Donald Trump in the White House. With Gov. DeSantis, we can do more to assert our state’s rights under the U.S. Constitution and give law enforcement the power to remove illegals, like Texas.
"Lastly, we need to ensure local officials can't undermine our state policies to fight this major problem.
"I will also work on making Florida affordable again. That starts with fighting inflation and lowering insurance costs. Balanced budgets, wise spending decisions and holding insurers accountable are keys to making these goals a reality."
Miller enters District 33 race: Monique Miller files to succeed Fine in South Brevard's Florida House District 33
Logan Luse
"Lower the cost of insurance for consumers by addressing challenges with re-insurance, frivolous lawsuits, fortifying our homes to resist the impact of major storms.
"I will create better futures for children under the care of the Florida Department of Children and Families by providing more resources to help programs they depend on.
"Focus on cleaning up the Indian River Lagoon by providing resources to government and nonprofits removing muck, planting seagrass, secure clean infrastructure, working to address our conservational well-being, and promoting protected lands to balance the growth in our county."
Monique Miller
"Florida is falling victim to a stream of unvetted, illegal immigrants pouring into our country, due to the Biden policies. I will give local law enforcement the authority to deport them, saving taxpayers countless millions of dollars.
"Second, Florida is facing an affordability crisis, thanks to the failure of Bidenomics. We must find ways to beat inflation and grow an economy that is prosperous for every Florida family. Insurance is unaffordable. Big insurance companies must be held accountable for their outrageous rates.
"Third, Brevard is changing rapidly, due to unprecedented growth. I want to preserve the quality of life we have come to enjoy in this community. I will provide leadership, coordinating with local governments to rapidly accelerate infrastructure projects."
Erika Orriss
"My main concern is our economy. We have seniors coming out of retirement to be able to pay for homeowners' insurance. Our automobile insurance is skyrocketing as well. These are issues that cannot wait. Illegal immigrants coming over and using our resources doesn’t help, either.
"Our children are our future. Parental involvement is crucial. Attention needs to focus on their emotional health (with two in 10 teenagers thinking about if not committing suicide). Academically, our children are graduating high school with the lowest ACT and SAT scores in 30 years. We must set our children up for success."
Campaign cash
As of July 19, here's how their campaign coffers looked, according to Florida's campaign finance database:
Limongello: $7,049 in monetary contributions, a $35,000 candidate loan and $12,850 spent. The Friends of Mike Limongello political committee had $1,000 on hand.
Luse: $31,510 in monetary contributions, $1,941 of in-kind contributions and $21,733 spent.
Miller: $64,801 in monetary contributions, a $100,000 candidate loan, $680.89 of in-kind contributions and $94,833 spent. The Friends of Monique Miller political committee also had $10,500 in contributions on hand.
Orriss: $21,394 in monetary contributions, a $110,000 candidate loan, $20,730 in-kind contributions, $39,474 spent, $1,505 in "other" expenditures.
Notable endorsements
Limongello's endorsements include Florida Realtors; Space Coast Association of Realtors; Police Benevolent Association of Florida; Associated Builders and Contractors of Florida; pro-life leader Father Frank Pavone; Reagan National Security Council member Dr. John Lenczowski; Florida Police Benevolent Association; AQ Rating from the National Rifle Association.
Luse is endorsed by U.S. Rep. Kat Cammack (R-Florida's 3rd District); Florida Sen. Joe Gruters; Florida Sen. Ana Maria Rodriguez; Florida Rep. and Speaker Pro Tempore Chuck Clemons; Florida Rep. Jim Mooney; Space Coast Home Builders and Contractors Association.
Miller is endorsed by Brevard County Sheriff Wayne Ivey; Florida Reps. Robbie Brackett, Randy Fine and Tyler Sirois; Business Voice; Florida Family Action; Republican Liberty Caucus of Florida; and Gun Owners of America.
Orriss lists among her endorsements as Helen Voltz (West Melbourne City Council member, former Brevard County commissioner); William Almon (Navy seal and author); Anthony Sabatini (Lake County Republican Executive Committee chair and former District 32 representative).
Contact Waymer at 321-261-5903 or [email protected]. Follow him on X/Twitter at @JWayEnviro.
More on Republican candidates for Florida House District 33
Mike Limongello
Where do you live? Palm Bay
Age: 34
Occupation: Technology executive
Education: University of Dallas, Bachelor of Arts, economics and finance, history minor; University of Georgia, Master of Business Administration, finance and innovation; The Institute of World Politics, Master of Arts, international relations
Campaign email: [email protected]
Campaign phone number: 321-344-2915
Website or Facebook page: www.mikelimongello.com
Logan Luse
Where do you live: Palm Bay
Age: 29 (will be 30 by primary day)
Occupation: Insurance
Education: University of Florida, Bachelor of Science in agricultural education and communications, with a specialization in communications and leadership development.
Political/government/civic experience: Current chairman of the Palm Bay Sustainability Board; a member of the Palm Bay Recreation Board, Palm Bay Infrastructure and Oversight Board, Liberty Bell Museum, Brevard County Planning and Zoning Board; and formerly a member of the Melbourne Code Enforcement Board. President of the American Conservation Coalition – Space Coast; deputy executive director of the Young Republican National Federation; the parliamentarian for the Florida Young Republicans; and vice president of the Space Coast Young Republicans. Worked and volunteered for several nonprofit organizations on the local, state and national levels.
Campaign email: [email protected]
Campaign phone number: 321-312-0534
Website or Facebook page: www.LoganLuse.com; www.facebook.com/voteloganLuse
Monique Miller
Where do you live? On Turkey Creek in Palm Bay
Age: 53
Occupation: Cybersecurity executive
Education: Studied physics as an undergraduate at Loyola New Orleans; earned Master of Business Administration from Emory University.
Political/government/civic experience: I have served on numerous boards in Brevard County, including the Lagoon Action Assembly, Marine Advisory Board and others. I am a graduate of LEAD Brevard, and I am a founder of the Brevard Veterans Resource Network. I also serve on the board of directors of Moms for Liberty's national organization.
Campaign email: [email protected]
Website or Facebook page: www.MoniqueforFlorida.com
Erika Orriss
Where do you live: Melbourne Beach
Age: 61
Occupation: Licensed mental health counselor / software consultant
Education: Bachelor of Arts, computer science, Southern Illinois University; Master of Science, counseling psychology, Troy State University
Political/government/civic experience: I have held office as a precinct committeewoman for Precinct 404 and currently for Precinct 311. I also do a lot of volunteering for the Republican Party. I organized a Breast Cancer Walk, championed an event for The Children's Hunger Project and a multitude of other community engagements. When COVID hit, I offered pro-bono sessions for our anxious citizens. I have offered pro-bono services to our county firefighters as well.
Campaign email: [email protected]
Campaign phone number: 407-460-6198
Website or Facebook page: erikaorriss.com
This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Four Republicans running in primary for Randy Fine's Florida House seat
