Equality Florida, SPLC targets Moms for Liberty candidates in historic mailer push
In a last-minute push before Tuesday’s election, Equality Florida Action PAC and the Southern Poverty Law Center Action Fund injected $250,000 into direct mailers targeting Moms for Liberty candidates in several nonpartisan School Board races around the state.
The organizations sent out 300,000 pieces of mail to about 200,000 voters in seven counties — the largest School Board mail program in the groups’ histories, according to a news release.
“Together, we can fire Moms for Liberty, get politics out of our classrooms, and elect public school champions who believe in our teachers and will fight for the safety and dignity of every student,” said Joe Saunders, Executive Director of Equality Florida Action PAC.
“Floridians want school boards focused on academic excellence — this year we’re bringing an end to the extremism and sideshows. It’s time to move on from Moms for Liberty.”
The mailers are supporting Orange County School Board candidates Angie Gallo, Melissa Lopez Marantes, Gloria Reina O’Neal and Susanne Peña; Karen Perez in Hillsborough; Christina Romelus in Palm Beach; Jimmy Glover, Beth Mayberry and Megan Tennimon in Sarasota; Nancy Velardi in Pinellas; Kristine Kraus and Autumn Garick in Seminole and Greg Filak in Osceola.
For example, a flyer in opposition to Alicia Farrant, who is running for Orange County School Board Chair, called her “too extreme for our kids” and accused her of supporting “book bans censorship and the Moms for Liberty agenda.”
The two advocacy groups said their messages have not been approved by any candidate and are being sent out independently.
The new mailers are part of a total of $400,000 in School Board races statewide through mail, digital ads and direct voter contact. The joint efforts also include 250 volunteers knocking on doors for the School Board races.
“Moms for Liberty and the far right have suffered a string of embarrassing defeats across the country in recent years, evidence that voters are tired of the agenda of chaos and censorship in schools,” said Brandon Jones, director of political campaigns for the SPLC Action Fund.