Florida Congressional District 18, which consists of Hendry, Glades, DeSoto, Hardee, Highlands, and parts of Polk and Collier counties, has its U.S. House of Representatives seat up for reelection this year.
The incumbent Republican, Scott Franklin, is looking to start his third term in Congress.
His opponent is Democrat Andrea Doria Kale, the former statewide deputy operations director for the Hillary Clinton campaign.
District 18 is characterized by its rapid urban growth in its northernmost counties, but most of its southern counties like DeSoto, Hendry and Hardee are rural and have historically struggled with resources. A major effort of Franklin’s has been assisting those counties in obtaining more funding.
"A lot of times, the rural counties are just really operating on a shoestring budget, and they don't have professional grant writers on staff," Franklin said. "So we're doing a lot of work to try to beef up their knowledge base, and make them aware of the kind of money that could be available to them."
Equality and abortion rights legislation are at the center of Kale's platform. She is an advocate for the Equal Rights Amendment, which guarantees equal protections for women in the constitution, the Freedom to Vote Act, which promotes voter registration and voting access and the Women’s Health Protection Act. Kale's motivation to run stems from her grandchildren, who were born via in vitro fertilization (IVF). IVF is endangered by the Life at Conception Act, which Franklin supports.
"My opponent, Scott Franklin, signed on to legislation called the Life at Conception Act, which had that been in place, three of my four grandchildren wouldn't be born," Kale said. "They were IVF children. So I think that probably is my biggest motivation."
The candidates agree that inflation is a growing issue for constituents and that more needs to be done to help families financially.
Franklin takes issue with Kale living outside of District 18. While this is legal for Kale to do as a candidate, Franklin believes it will hinder her ability to serve.
"She lives in Sarasota, and never lived in any place that is part of Florida 18," Franklin said. "The needs of Sarasota are vastly different than the needs of Okeechobee and Glades and Hendry counties, and I just don't think you have an appreciation for that if you don't work and live and have connections in those communities."
If Kale is elected, she aims to support equality and abortion rights amendments, assist in codifying landmark civil rights supreme court cases into law and advocate for working-class families on the House floor.
"It's not enough until we get that in the US Constitution, that we are equals, that everyone is equal," Kale said.
If Franklin is re-elected, he aims to keep promoting border and national security, the improvement of infrastructure to meet the district’s agricultural needs, and the continuation of Everglades restoration.
WGCU is your trusted source for news and information in Southwest Florida. We are a nonprofit public service, and your support is more critical than ever. Keep public media strong and donate now. Thank you.