Broward Democrats show support for suspended Sheriff Scott Israel

A significant faction of Broward Democratic Party leaders wants the party to show support for suspended Broward Sheriff Scott Israel on the grounds that he was wrongly removed from office by Gov. Ron DeSantis.

A resolution considered by the county Democratic Executive Committee on Tuesday night argued that DeSantis suspended Israel in January “without good cause and with no hearing.”

Based on applause and comments, most of the almost 100 people present for the discussion supported the resolution, but there wasn’t a vote because there wasn’t a quorum of committee members.

Aligning the local Democratic Party with the suspended sheriff could be politically dicey.

Israel’s name is toxic to some people in and around Parkland, who hold him responsible for failure to prevent or adequately respond to the Feb. 14, 2018, massacre at Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School.

Removing the Democratic sheriff was a rallying cry for many Republicans — so much so that it became an issue in the 2018 gubernatorial campaign, with DeSantis signaling to voters he was prepared to remove Israel. Three days after he was sworn in, DeSantis suspended the sheriff.

But Israel remains popular with many Democratic activists.

Fans and foes of Israel said he was enthusiastically greeted at a premier Democratic political event over the weekend, a fundraiser at the home of former Property Appraiser Lori Parrish.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.