As voters trickle to the polls early and primary day approaches, the four candidates who want to be Orange County’s next mayor have appeared twice in televised debates, the first debate on WESH Channel 2 and the second on WFTV Channel 9 Watching the debates, I learned a lot about how the candidates are running their campaigns, and how they want to present themselves to voters.

Overview of Candidates

First, a look at the candidates in alphabetical order:

Chris Messina is the lone self-proclaimed “conservative” in the race. He is a medical device company owner, and you can see his full campaign platform here.

Tiffany Moore-Russell is resigning as the Orange County Clerk of Courts to run for this office. She previously served eight years on the Orange County Commission. Her platform is here.

Stephanie Murphy served three terms in Congress representing both Orange and Seminole counties from 2017 to 2023 and also worked for the Department of Defense from 2004 to 2008. Murphy’s platform is here.

Mayra Uribe will resign as the OrangeCounty’s District 3 Commissioner to run for mayor. Uribe previously worked as a longtime aide to U.S. Senator Bill Nelson. Her platform is here.

Amendment 3: Save Our Homes From Excessive Property Taxes

The topic that dominated both debates was what to do if Amendment 3 passes and Orange County loses as much as 165 million dollars in revenue. Chris Messina is the only one of the four that says he will vote in favor of that amendment to cut property taxes on homesteaded properties. “There’s a lot of fraud and bureaucracy and waste in county government that we need to get to the bottom of.” He gave the example of a program designed to teach 30 adults to use computers that costs taxpayers 300 thousand dollars and is promising a forensic audit of county spending on day one. Mayra Uribe believes the savings are already there. “We are very staff heavy,” she told debate watchers, pointing out that the county budget increased by 7.6% this year alone over last year. “We have a lot of ability to cut,” she said, adding she plans to consolidate fiscal groups for eight different departments into one.

Stephanie Murphy refused to lay out exactly what programs might face the chopping block were she mayor and Amendment 3 passed, saying in the WFTV debate, “There needs to be a level of accountability, and then we can talk about what areas need to be cut.” Murphy promised to look at a state-mandated accountability exercise where government needed to come up with ways to cut 10 percent of its budget. She also turned her nose down at adding new fees, calling them regressive. “I’d rather go look for efficiencies within County government.”

Tiffany Moore-Russell was the only candidate to admit she would be willing to raise taxes to cover shortfalls if property tax reform passes. “Maybe some programs need to go away,” she told WESH, pointing out she had to cut her budget three times in her first year as the Orange Clerk of Courts. Moore-Russell said the recent failed push to add a stormwater tax to Orange County property owners is an example of what may happen in Orange and many municipalities across the state. “We need a dedicated funding source just for stormwater, so there may be some fees that we have to explore.”

Housing Affordability

Another big topic on the mind of voters is affordability, specifically with housing. Stephanie Murphy warned this issue is tied to Amendment 3, and a big reason she opposes it. “It removes any incentive for any municipality ever to permit a home that costs less than 250 thousand dollars because that means it would just be costs to that county and no revenue.” Murphy also wants to set up a clock that counts down, so developers better know when permitting will be done, reducing their costs. Tiffany Moore-Russell’s approach will be to put affordable housing closest to where the best transit is, making it easier for the people that live there to get to work.

Commissioner Mayra Uribe had a different approach. She said there is enough housing in Orange County, but too much of it is market rate, making it too expensive for many, especially tourism industry workers. Her suggestion is to put those people in market rate apartments with government subsidies making up the difference between what they can afford and what the market will bear. She also railed against concentrating affordable housing in the same areas, saying “we’re feeding generational poverty.”

For Chris Messina, the answer was much more simple: recruit better companies and jobs to Orange County and people will be able to afford housing.

Tourist Tax Spending

With Orange County now collecting over $350 million dollars a year in tourist taxes, how to spend it has become a major topic in the mayor’s race. Chris Messina was again the only candidate to express full support for pursuing a baseball team for the Orlando Dreamers, the group trying to bring one here, but needs a stadium. “It has to stand on its own, and that means the community here, we have to have an equity stake in whatever sports franchise comes here,” he opined at the WESH debate, going even further for the WFTV audience. “I will support you if you can find a way for the residents and the citizens of Orange County to have a financial stake in the success of the ballclub.”

Only Mayra Uribe was adamantly against the idea, saying “we’ve already given a lot away when it comes to sports.” She also railed against Visit Orlando when it comes to use of the tourist tax, saying it is time to cut the portion they get in marketing dollars. By law, the county is obligated to spend 40% of tourist taxes on marketing the tourism industry, but not necessarily with Visit Orlando. “It’s too much money. 120 million dollars to a private, outsourced company is too much money.”

Both Tiffany Moore-Russell and Stephanie Murphy were noncommittal, with Moore-Russell demanding all the financials first and reminding voters that with things the Magic eventually put into the venues deal, like public gyms, she did come around. “I have been very consistent. If there is going to be a use of TDT dollars, we have to have a return on that investment.”

Murphy isn’t saying no either but wants a lot more of the financial details. “To me, if we have people, whether they are businesses or sports franchises, who want to make this community a world class community for the residents who live here, then we should have conversations about how we go about supporting that effort.”

Last Impressions

After spending two hours watching these candidates, one thing I noticed was the complete lack of one-line pot shots we so often see in debates. I feel like Stephanie Murphy and Tiffany Moore-Russell were the most reserved, playing it safe, perhaps knowing from polls that they are contenders and not wanting to give too much ammo to their opposition. Chris Messina and Mayra Uribe were the most willing to put positions on the record that a percentage of the voters may find to be controversial. It all makes for a fascinating primary, and I encourage you to read more on all of the candidates before the August 18^th vote. If no one gets more than 50% plus one of the vote, the two highest vote-getters face off in the November general election.

Mike Synan

News | Sports | Politics

After two decades in news and politics, Mike Synan is returning to his roots to write Sports as “The Sportsaholic”. Mike hosted a talk show for 6 years on WDBO after Magic home games called “Magic Til Midnight”, and spent years working as an in-game correspondent for both ESPN and Fox Sports Radio. His column “Synan Says” has appeared on both www.wdbo.com and www.floridadaily.com. He has a BS in Political Science from Clemson University. You can reach him at msynan@sportsmail.com

Don’t Just Read It. Live It.

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Author

Mike Synan

After two decades in news and politics, Mike Synan is returning to his roots to write Sports as “The Sportsaholic”. Mike hosted a talk show for 6 years on WDBO after Magic home games called “Magic Til Midnight”, and spent years working as an in-game correspondent for both ESPN and Fox Sports Radio. His column “Synan Says” has appeared on both www.wdbo.com and www.floridadaily.com. He has a BS in Political Science from Clemson University. You can reach him at msynan@sportsmail.com

College Football Power Flex Rankings: Updated Top 25 (Week 1, 2025)

College football in the state of Florida is back! Since Florida State won the title in 2014, college football in the state of Florida has been a pretty sad state of affairs. After week one of the 2025 season, Sunshine State teams are flexing their muscles, led by a resurgence in Tallahassee and Miami.

Florida State put an absolute whuppin (OK, I admit that’s not a real word) on pre-season top 10 Alabama. That FSU won was not the headline, it was the way they won. The Seminoles completely dominated an Alabama team of 5 star recruits on both the offensive and defensive lines, punishing them repeatedly with bone crushing blocks and tackles. Clearly, bringing in Gus Malzahn to be the Offensive Coordinator has worked. The Seminoles rushed for 230 yards and held the Crimson Tide to just 87 yards on the ground. That’s a manhandling on both sides of the ball. If you are an FSU fan, you have to feel like the team is back, and that the 4 new starters on the offensive line are a complete success, as is new quarterback Thomas Castellano. The Seminoles were one of the most impressive teams I saw over the weekend, and the rankings will reflect that.

Miami also wants to be back. Perennially they are proclaimed as back and end up falling on their face. What makes me feel like this year could be different is what I saw in the trenches with the Hurricanes. The team has NFL level talent on their offensive and defensive lines and it showed in a 28-24 win over Notre Dame. Carson Beck was efficient at quarterback after transferring in from the University of Georgia, and new receiver CJ Daniels made what may end up being the touchdown catch of the year with a one-handed grab.

I would be remiss in talking about the state of affairs with football in Florida without mentioning the resounding victory USF had over ranked Boise State to kick off the season in front of a national TV audience. The 34-7 rout was a sure sign that Coach Alex Golesh is moving the team in the right direction.

SYNAN SAYS TOP 25 FOR THE WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 2ND

LSU (1-0) – I saw nothing more impressive than winning at Clemson by shutting them out in the 2nd half
FLORIDA STATE (1-0) – Physically whipped Alabama
OHIO STATE (1-0) – Offense has a long way to go, defense is top notch
MIAMI (1-0) – So far, so good Carson Beck
TCU (1-0) – man did they shellack Bill Belicheck’s UNC team
AUBURN (1-0) – impressive road win at Baylor
SOUTH CAROLINA (1-0) – team needs a lot of work, but handling VT on a neutral field is impressive
USC (1-0) – they scored a whopping 73 points vs. new FBS school Missouri State
OLE MISS (1-0) – Ga. State is not great, but the Rebs did hang 63 on them
USF (1-0) – Bludgeoning Boise gives them this spot
IOWA STATE (2-0) – win over Kansas St. less impressive this week
TENNESSEE (1-0) – new QB Joey Aguilar stepped right in against Syracuse
GEORGIA (1-0) – Look like they want to run the ball like Georgia normally does
UTAH (1-0) – hard to tell how good win at UCLA is
CALIFORNIA (1-0) – went to Corvallis and waxed Oregon State
VIRGINIA (1-0) – beat perennial bowl team Coastal Carolina 48-7
PENN STATE (1-0) – let Nevada score late, but they’re still a top team
GEORGIA TECH (1-0) – QB Haynes King is for real. Questions about the rest of the team
NEBRASKA (1-0) – winning at Cincinnati gets them ranked for now
TEXAS (0-1) – lost at #3 by one score, they’re still good
ARIZONA (1-0) – whipped Hawaii that has already beaten Stanford
CLEMSON (0-1) – made it inside the 20 to tie the game in the 4th, but not enough running against LSU
NOTRE DAME (0-1) – gave Miami everything they had
KANSAS (2-0) – convincing wins over mediocre teams
WASHINGTON (1-0) – will be gone as soon as teams like Florida and Oregon play someone, anyone!

Mike Synan

After two decades in news and politics, Mike Synan is returning to his roots to write Sports as “The Sportsaholic”. Mike hosted a talk show for 6 years on WDBO after Magic home games called “Magic Til Midnight”, and spent years working as an in-game correspondent for both ESPN and Fox Sports Radio. His column “Synan Says” has appeared on both www.wdbo.com and www.floridadaily.com. He has a BS in Political Science from Clemson University. You can reach him at msynan@sportsmail.com

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Overview of Candidates

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Tourist Tax Spending

Last Impressions

Mike Synan

Don’t Just Read It. Live It.

Get the latest stories, rankings, and culture from Pulp City delivered straight to your inbox.

Author

College Football Power Flex Rankings: Updated Top 25 (Week 1, 2025)

SYNAN SAYS TOP 25 FOR THE WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 2ND

Mike Synan

Don’t Just Read It. Live It.

Get the latest stories, rankings, and culture from Pulp City delivered straight to your inbox.

Orange County Mayor Race.

STAR Plan: New Public.

Stop F*cking Calling Us.

Overview of Candidates

Amendment 3: Save Our Homes From Excessive Property Taxes

Housing Affordability

Tourist Tax Spending

Last Impressions

Mike Synan

Don’t Just Read It. Live It.

Get the latest stories, rankings, and culture from Pulp City delivered straight to your inbox.

Author

College Football Power Flex Rankings: Updated Top 25 (Week 1, 2025)

SYNAN SAYS TOP 25 FOR THE WEEK OF SEPTEMBER 2ND

Mike Synan

Don’t Just Read It. Live It.

Get the latest stories, rankings, and culture from Pulp City delivered straight to your inbox.

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