Rep. Val Demings, D-Fl. is currently seeking a promotion to the Senate where she is facing off against incumbent Marco Rubio, R-Fl. to represent Florida’s 10th District.
The race is a long shot as polling experts show Rubio ahead by double-digits, though Demings has had an impressive showing in fundraising with help from Democrat-aligned PACs and activist organizations.
On Thursday, Ex-Representative Corrine Brown filed to run for the vacant seat. Brown is a veteran Congresswoman who served in D.C for twelve terms from 1993 to 2016.
While she brings a significant amount of experience to the race, she also brings a significant amount of baggage.
In 2016, Brown was indicted on 22 charges of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and wire fraud, concealing material facts on required financial disclosure forms, theft of government property, obstruction of the Internal Revenue Service laws, and filing false tax returns. Quite the rap sheet.
The next year, Brown was convicted on 18 of 22 charges and sentenced to five years in prison. She only had to serve two after she was released on humanitarian grounds because of the Covid-19 pandemic.
Brown gave a statement about her entry in to the Congressional race, but made little mention of her prior conviction.
“I’ve represented most of the people of the new 10th District during my 24 years in Congress and I always earned huge support in this region. I see our hard-won gains are being taken away from us. Minorities have lost opportunities to elect candidates of their choice because of the recent gerrymandering in the State of Florida.” She said on her website.
The website briefly mentions that she recently settled with the Department of Justice, who agreed to drop ‘all but one charge’ against her.
The Democratic primary in the district is currently wide open, with ten candidates running for the nomination. Brown will be the eleventh candidate to declare.
While Brown may not win the primary due to her prior convictions, the District is generally seen as safe for Democrats, with the Cook Political Report claiming it is a D+15 seat.
Follow PBC Jolt on Facebook
Follow PBC Jolt on Twitter
You may also like: The Fraternal Order of Police declined Debra Robinson’s race card
Be sure to read: FL Dems tack right on criminal justice due to soaring crime
