It’s Official: Parkland Mayor Michael Udine Quits To Run For Stacy Ritter’s Seat
BY BUDDY NEVINS
It’s official.
Stacy Ritter has officially resigned, ending her 20-year-career in politics. She started her new job, executive director of the Greater Fort Lauderdale Convention and Visitors Bureau, this week.
Parkland Mayor Michael Udine, her probable replacement in Commission District 3, also resigned officially as of November 2 at 11:59 p.m. State law ( F.S. 99.012) requires him to irrevocably resign before taking any new office.
Mayor Michael Udine of Parkland with Broward Sheriff Scott Israel last month at Kings Point condominium complex, Tamarac.
A lawyer who graduated from the University of Florida Law School in 1989, Udine has had his own firm since 1991 with an emphasis in insurance and real estate law. He was elected to the Parkland City Commission in March 2003. He was elected mayor in March 2006.
Udine raised an amazing $135,000 from roughly 250 contributors during his first month of campaigning in May. The only other Democrat in the race, Raymark Clement, has $1,457 in contributions since late last year, this despite the plea on his website for donations up to $3,000 which is three times the legal $1,000 limit.
District 3, largely in Parkland, Coral Springs and Tamarac, is heavily Democratic — 63,555 Ds, 30,729 Rs and 37,609 no party or minor parties.
Ritter, an attorney, won a state House seat in 1996 in a rough-and-tumble Democratic primary against then-School Board member Karen Dickerhoff.
While in the House, she was known as a tough, outspoken liberal who could also work with Republicans to get things done.Term limits forced her to leave Tallahassee in 2004.
She then won a seat on the County Commission in 2006 and served until last week. The commission seat was in Northwest Broward, basically the same area Ritter represented in the House.
Her major achievements included shepherding the new longer runway at Fort Lauderdale-Hollywood International Airport and finally getting a new courthouse approved for downtown Fort Lauderdale. Both projects had been stalled for years.
She also was the first and most visible Broward politicians to support Barack Obama for president in 2008 when most of the Broward Democratic establishment endorsed Hillary Clinton.
But there were problems, too. In 2011, Ritter paid an $8,300 fine to settle 28 counts of election law violations, which she blamed on sloppy bookkeeping.
Ritter resigned last week.
No more campaigning for Stacy Ritter, seen here in 2015 with U. S. Rep. Alcee Hastings at Kings Point condominium complex, Tamarac (Picture by Percy Johnson)
June 7th, 2016 at 1:27 pm
Buddy;
Clement earned himself a few complaints — we’ve filed ’em.
1. The $3K donation request
2. The improper disclosure
3. Spending more than he took in, that’s against the law.
http://i.imgur.com/siVQlrq.jpg
And, if you read his campaign stuff, written in Spanglish, one of the problems facing Broward County is a lack of bike lane out west.
Opa!
However, that issues been address/fixed.
June 7th, 2016 at 5:01 pm
We are stuck with the another career politician. Ugh.
June 7th, 2016 at 11:12 pm
Mike is a strong and qualified candidate to add the the county commission. In the next two years, Barbara will be the most senior commissioner (ugh). There is a change coming and I think its going to bring the county up up and away. We need more of the Bogan/Furr style people and Udine is a great add.
Mike we support you!
June 8th, 2016 at 1:33 pm
With the latest Florida Bulldog exposures of 6 to 1 votes to hand over MILLIONS to County Contractors because of contractors or County Staff’s screwups n covercups will Mayor Udine FIGHT FOR US TAXPAYERS or CARRY WATER FOR THE LOBBYISTS N VENDORS like the current County Commussioners?