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Dec 30, 20212 min read
Florida’s dark money playbook: How ‘ghost’ candidate scheme revealed secretive political tactics
Last year, less than a month before Election Day, voters in Seminole and Volusia counties who would help decide one of the closest state...


Dec 17, 20212 min read
Operative pitched secretive political spending plan to FPL exec’s email alias, records reveal
Early in the evening of Nov. 26, 2019, the Tuesday of Thanksgiving week, a political consultant working for utility giant Florida Power &...


Dec 10, 20211 min read
Operatives working for FPL arranged job offer to opponent of Jacksonville utility sale, records show
In the middle of 2019, Jacksonville City Council member Garrett Dennis was approached by a friend about a mysterious job offer. The offer...


Dec 2, 20213 min read
Florida Power & Light execs worked with consultants behind ‘ghost’ candidate scheme, records reveal
Top executives at utility giant Florida Power & Light worked closely with the political consultants who orchestrated a scheme to promote...


Nov 18, 20212 min read
Big business-linked group gave over $1 million to dark-money entity promoting ‘ghost’ candidates
An organization closely linked to one of Florida’s biggest business-lobbying groups gave more than $1 million last year to the dark-money...


Oct 20, 20212 min read
Man behind ‘ghost’ candidate cash also led dark-money group supporting Florida utility companies
The same man who led a dark-money group supporting spoiler “ghost” candidates in key state Senate races last year also led another...


Sep 8, 20212 min read
Dems gave $700K to dark-money group that helped Republicans win races in ‘ghost’ candidate scandal
The dark-money nonprofit that worked with Republican strategists last year to promote spoiler independent candidates in important state...


Aug 25, 20212 min read
Chair of dark-money group in Florida’s ‘ghost’ candidate scandal has ties to other secretive groups
The chairman of the dark-money group that provided more than half a million dollars in support of “ghost” candidates in last year’s...


Aug 4, 20212 min read
Dark money behind Florida ‘ghost’ candidates has ties to Alabama political players, records suggest
The source of over half a million dollars spent last year promoting “ghost” candidates in key state Senate races remained a mystery even...


Jul 28, 20212 min read
PACs behind ‘ghost’ candidates were run out of business lobbying group’s HQ, records show
Two political committees that spent more than half a million dollars promoting so-called “ghost” candidates in three important state...


Jul 26, 20212 min read
Artiles worked closely with GOP consulting firm during ‘ghost’ candidate scheme, documents indicate
On June 11 of last year, authorities say Frank Artiles met Alex Rodriguez in the parking lot of a Miami bank, where Artiles gave...


Jul 7, 20212 min read
Joel Greenberg boasted of plan to ‘control’ Orange sheriff’s office through outsider candidate
In June 2018, a financially struggling first-time political candidate who signed up to run for sheriff of Orange County was almost...


Jun 16, 20211 min read
Records link big business group to Florida elections probe
Investigators searching for the source of more than half-a-million dollars spent last year in support of spoiler candidates that helped...


Jun 10, 20212 min read
Nikki Fried’s personal, financial connections to cannabis complicate her campaign for governor
In January 2019, just as Nikki Fried took office as Florida’s new agriculture commissioner promising to expand access to marijuana and...


May 26, 20211 min read
Orlando doctor pressed marijuana company seeking business in Florida to give $10K to Gaetz campaign
An Orlando medical marijuana entrepreneur arranged access to U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz for the top executive at a cannabis-industry company...


May 5, 20212 min read
Matt Gaetz helped set off Florida’s marijuana ‘green rush.’ Some of his friends, allies scored big
Less than 24 hours before the Florida Legislature passed the state’s first medical marijuana law in May 2014, Matt Gaetz and other...


Apr 15, 20211 min read
How medical marijuana, powerful allies fueled rise of Orlando doctor embroiled in Gaetz sex scandal
In May 2014, just before the Florida Legislature passed the state’s first medical marijuana law, then-state House Reps. Matt Gaetz and...


Apr 12, 20212 min read
Joel Greenberg doled out contracts to politicians, strategists tied to figures in political scandals
Before he resigned in disgrace last year, Seminole County Tax Collector Joel Greenberg doled out dubious contracts to a number of...


Apr 12, 20212 min read
Dorworth, Greenberg maneuvered behind the scenes on behalf of controversial housing development
In October 2018, about a week after lobbyist and developer Chris Dorworth sued Seminole County for rejecting his proposed River Cross...


Mar 30, 20211 min read
JetBlue is avoiding nearly $1 million a year in local property taxes
JetBlue Airways Corp. has been improperly avoiding as much as $800,000 a year in property taxes, according to new Orange County Property...
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