News

Florida GOP Officially Charters Log Cabin Chapter

First Official Party Recognition in South

April 22, 1999

(WASHINGTON, DC) – The Republican Party of Florida formally recognized the Broward County Log Cabin Club as a chartered Republican organization yesterday. The state GOP charter was presented by Broward County GOP Chairman Edward Pozzuoli at a meeting of the Broward County chapter of Log Cabin Republicans. It marked the first chartering of a Log Cabin Republicans chapter in the south.

"We applaud Tom Slade and the state GOP for their recognition of the hard work and dedication of our activists in Florida," said Rich Tafel, executive director of Log Cabin Republicans. "It is a testament to the years of relentless activism by leaders like Andy Eddy and Jack Majeske and other Log Cabin leaders in Broward County that they have earned an official party charter. It also demonstrates the kind of inclusive party that Governor Jeb Bush has been promising."

"The Republican Party has been viewed as mean-spirited and intolerant for too long, and it has cost us elections," Tafel said. "We are seeing more local and state Republican leaders reaching out to the gay community not only to broaden the party base but to clearly demonstrate to women, independents and other swing voters that they really mean it when they talk about inclusion. With all the senseless gay bashing that has happened over the years inside the GOP, people will judge all the rhetoric about inclusion by how the Republican Party treats gay people in the next election."