The executive director of the Florida Democratic Party, Juan Peñalosa, was named Biden’s chief adviser, although the presidential race has already been a comprehensive approach for the party he leads. Karen Andre, a lawyer from Organizing Together 2020, was also named Senior Advisor. Her resume includes working for the successful primary campaign for 2018 Florida Democratic Governor nominee Andrew Gillum.
“We are delighted to bring together some of the most talented and experienced minds in Florida Democratic politics to oversee a Florida operation that will reflect the diversity of the state and prioritize the issues that Floridians are concerned about,” said Jenn Ridder, national director of Biden states, in a statement. “We look forward to competing aggressively at Sunshine State, and Jackie, Juan, Brandon and Karen will lead the team that will turn Florida blue and help send Joe Biden to the White House.”
The campaign is also expected to bring in a national director of faith outreach in the near future.
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Biden has consistently outstripped Trump in public polls in Florida, a state the president won by 113,000 votes in 2016. The Florida polls’ Real Clear Politics average has Biden leading Trump 48-43, figures including a Atypical survey of the Trafalgar Group that had the race tied in the state.
There is no real path to Trump’s reelection without winning Florida, a reality that adds to the sense of urgency of both campaigns in the nation’s largest state.
To try to help the ship, Trump last week made his own splash of staff, hiring Susie Wiles, a veteran Florida Republican Party consultant who led the president’s campaign in Florida in 2016. That hiring occurred even when Wiles was removed from the orbit of Florida Governor Ron DeSantis, a major ally of Trump.
