Republican Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Candidate Chuck Nadd has suspended his campaign. He announced the suspension of his campaign through a post on Twitter, which can be viewed below. Nadd had been in the race for less than a month and managed to get the endorsement of the Republican Liberty Caucus of Florida.
— Chuck Nadd (@ChuckNadd) April 26, 2022
Nadd was running against Senate President Wilton Simpson and Jim Shaw for the position. Shaw has homes in Vero Beach and Okeechobee, having ran many businesses, including running a 30 Acre Composting Farm and a trucking transportation company with over 200 employees. Simpson himself has been involved with farming throughout his life and is 5th generation Floridian.
Nadd’s announcement comes a day after Governor DeSantis endorsed Senate President Wilton Simpson in the Commissioner of Agriculture race.
Not all Conservatives are happy with Governor DeSantis' endorsement of the Senate President due to Simpson supposedly having written the 2018 Marjory Stoneman Douglas School Safety Act, which included Gun Control provisions. Many of those Conservatives have said that the gun control provisions in the bill are Unconstitutional on the Federal level, such as the Red Flag Protection Orders and persons ages 18-21 not being able to purchase a firearm in the State of Florida. Currently, the Florida State Constitution has a provision in it that allows the State Government to regulate the manner citizens can keep and bear arms. This can be found in Section I Article 8(a) where it says "except that the manner of bearing arms may be regulated by law." Federal Courts have yet to hear a case regarding the Constitutionality of Red Flag Laws anywhere in the United States.
Simpsons' history with creating the Parkland Gun Control Bill has caused some Conservatives to want to support Jim Shaw over Simpson. Shaw has a strong Pro-2nd Amendment stance, including standing against Red Flag Laws. According to his website, Shaw finds that Red Flag laws make a person "guilty until proven innocent." He even cited Andrew Pollack's opposition to the then Senate President accepting a large half a million dollar donation from a gun control PAC ran by billionaire Michael Bloomberg. Andrew Pollack the Father of one of the Parkland Victims, Meadow Pollack, who lost her life on that tragic day.
It's worth noting that Senate President Wilton Simpson said he was open to supporting the passage of Constitutional Carry in the Florida State Senate, when he met with the Republican Liberty Caucus of Florida. Simpson met with the Republican Liberty Caucus of Florida during the main 2022 legislative session.
The Commissioner of Agriculture is responsible for the distribution of Gun Permits in the State of Florida.
Currently, the Commissioner of Agriculture Seat is being held by Democrat Nikki Fried, who is currently running for Governor. She is going against former Florida Governor Charlie Christ in the Democratic Primary for the nomination. Christ is currently a member of Congress from Pinellas County. He was a Republican when he served one term as Governor from 2007-2011. Charlie Christ is currently a Democrat.
