Republican men reelect officers

The Republican Men of Clay reelected their current slate of officers for 2023 during their Nov. 16 meeting at Santionis Italian Restaurant in Fleming Island.

President Mike Cella, Vice-president Gary Cross, Secretary David Theus and Treasurer Scotty Taylor were reelected.

Election attorney Tom Spencer gave the club a legal update on the 2022 elections, and several members offered their own analysis of the races and predictions for upcoming campaigns.

After the meeting, Cella said he was happy with the Florida results but was disappointed in races outside the Sunshine State.

“Well, here in Florida, if you’re Republican, you’re pretty happy about it,” he said of the election. “We were able to motivate our voters to come out in pretty good numbers. But it is frustrating to see other states where that’s not the case.”

Cella added that he is concerned about Democrat efforts to grow in Clay County.

“We know that the Democratic Party is very interested in gaining a foothold in Clay County, which is viewed as being a very red, very Republican county,” he said. “It can happen pretty quickly. I mean, people forget, especially those that have moved into Clay County over the last 10, 15, 20 years, that in the late eighties and early nineties, Clay County was a Democratic stronghold. So, I mean, that’s how fast it happened. Not that it will happen overnight, but you never know with all the new people moving into the county.”

Cella noted that four precincts in Clay now have a Democrat majority: three in Oakleaf Plantation and one in Orange Park.

“That’s why we worked very hard for our new commissioner-elect, Alexandra Compere because we knew it would be a tough race for her because three out of the six precincts in the district were Democrat-controlled, at least in terms of the numbers. And there’s an example where we worked really hard, turned out our vote and won.”