Volusia County Republican Party Chairman Paul Deering will face challengers when leadership elections are held next month if he chooses to seek reelection.
At least two contenders to lead the Volusia County Republican Executive Committee (RECVC) have emerged: Mary Ann Pistilli, director of this year’s Donald Trump Florida campaign, and Ormond Beach City Commissioner Travis Sargent.
Deering – who has been chairman since Tony Ledbetter’s death in 2017 – did not respond to phone calls and text messages seeking comment on his intentions.
Change is coming for Volusia Democrats
Meanwhile, the Volusia County Democratic Party is certain to see new leadership after continuing the party’s decline of more registered voters than Republicans in 2017. Republicans have taken the lead among more than 56,000 voters, as the county has elected only Republicans to Congress, the Florida Legislature and the County Council.
Jewel Dickson joked Wednesday that she has to bring Kleenex to meetings because of the “deep depression” members have fallen into since election night.
Jewel Dickson
“I’ve been chairman for eight years now,” Dickson said. “That’s long enough.”
Dickson said the Democratic leadership election will take place on December 9.
She said she is aware of two strong candidates for chairman, but will not publicly name them until the election takes place.
Another change for Volusia Democrats is that they will elect nine state committee members and committee women instead of two, Dickson said.
It’s part of a state expansion that more appropriately distributes these officeholders among the counties, so instead of two commissioners from Liberty County, pop. 7,706, and Miami-Dade, which has a population of nearly 2.7 million, the larger counties will have more say in state party decisions.
GOP members host open forum for presidential candidates
A grassroots group of Republicans in Volusia County has taken the unusual step of hosting an open forum for candidates for party chairmanship.
The forum will be held on Tuesday, November 26 from 6:00 PM to 9:00 PM at the Brannon Center, 105 S. Riverside Dr., New Smyrna Beach. Visitors can meet the candidates and learn more about them. The meeting is open not only to candidates for chairman, but also to vice-chairman, secretary and treasurer.
“This event is not organized or sanctioned by the RECVC, but rather is an opportunity for those interested in running for these important offices to introduce themselves and answer questions from the public. An open forum such as this is generally not allowed at the RECVC meetings,” said Doug Pettit, one of the organizers, in an email.
Deering led a party that dominated Volusia County, though not without internal strife. Many Republicans disagreed with his decision to vote on supporting one of the two Republicans in the Volusia County seat race. Party members who participated in that vote favored Randy Dye over Jeff Brower, the incumbent. As a result, Brower’s name was omitted from the Republican voter guides that were mailed and delivered to thousands of voters, yet he was still re-elected.
Are Trump’s NDAs Responsible for Not Inviting the Media?
Meanwhile, others were unhappy. Deering did not call for an endorsement vote in the Ormond Beach mayoral race, which also included two Republicans.
Among them was Sargent, who was first elected to the Ormond Beach Commission in 2022.
“The Republican Party needs to come together,” he said Wednesday.
Pistilli did not respond to a request for comment on Wednesday, which is notable because Pettit took the unusual step of not inviting the news media to cover the forum next week.
“Unfortunately, we must withdraw our invitation to the press staff event,” Pettit wrote in an email. “It has come to our attention that one of our candidates currently has a contractual restriction on press contact. As a result of this situation, the candidate will not be able to attend if the event is covered by the press.”
Pettit apologized in the email and later said in a phone call that the event remains open to the public, but not to the press, and that he was unexpectedly “caught in the net.”
Pistilli worked for the Trump campaign, which required staffers to sign nondisclosure agreements, which are not publicly available. It is unclear whether the restriction on speaking to the press would remain intact if Pistilli were elected chairman.
Volusia Republican Party state committee member Vic Baker called Pistilli “a very successful political operative” who he said is being considered for a job in the Trump administration.
“I wouldn’t be surprised if Mary Ann is asked to work in his administration,” Baker said. “She is extremely capable.”
This article originally appeared in The Daytona Beach News-Journal: Volusia Republican and Democratic leadership elections are scheduled for next month
