The Florida Democratic Party isn’t salvageable. If the GOP wanted to sabotage Democrats they couldn’t be more effective than their “rivals” already are. And the party just keeps getting worse and worse. There used to be a contest over which party was worse, the Ohio Democratic Party or the Florida Democratic Party. That contest is no longer close.
The latest was the FDP giving it’s endorsement to a corrupt sociopath who is both anti-Choice and anti-LGBTQ as state Agriculture Commissioner. Before you start wondering why the Florida Dems endorsed a Republican… just stop. Naomi Blemur, a pastor, a corrupt businesswoman and scam artist,, is a registered Democrat who knows how to play the game with the consultants who call the shots in FDP politics, in this case MDW (Michael Whorley’s company).
By way of disclaimer, let me say that Blue America has endorsed J.R. Gaillot for the same post Naomi Blemur is running for. During the vetting process we ran across enough financial irregularities to disqualify her from Blue America contention— although apparently not from Florida Democratic Party contention, a party where corruption is a plus, much like with the Florida Republican Party.
Last week, the West Orlando News blew the corruption story out of the water. Like so many dreadful Florida Democratic politicians, she’s all about personal story— whether true of manufactured— and very light on anything concerning policies. And it turns out that her personal story should be the last thing she wants anyone looking at— “personal connections to extensive fraud, name changes, a flurry of court cases and a husband who defrauded millions of dollars from Floridia’s Haitian community.”
In a political climate where conspiracies and rumors have plagued the national conversation, Democrats must ask themselves whether Blemur should be a contender in this primary at all. With Democrats facing an already catastrophic identity crisis, the eventual nominee must be well-versed in policy, steadfast in their platform, and infallible in their opposition.
Prior to registering as a Democrat in Florida, Blemur belonged to the Democratic Party of New York under the name “Naromie Leriche.” Under this name, Blemur founded the non-profit Esther’s House of Hope, Inc. in 2008 at a Cambria Heights property, which she purchased in 2006 for $300,000. This purchase was not reported on her campaign filings despite it qualifying as a personal asset that must be disclosed under Florida election laws.
Blemur’s name changes have now become so convoluted that even close friends don’t know what to call Blemur. Her former classmate attempted to endorse her as “Naromie,” and she has several legal documents and publications under the same name that have been linked to the purchase of the unreported asset, Esther’s House of Hope, Inc.
Questions continue to arise when researching her repertoire. As a self-described “Life Coach,” she wrote a book titled The Process to Purpose, credited in the “About the Author” section once again under the name “Naromie Leriche.” In the same paragraph, a different spelling of her name appears: “Naomie’s passion is to see men & women fulfill their purpose and walk in destiny.”
Esther’s House of Hope and Blemur’s ties to the non-profit have also raised concerns by members of Florida’s Haitian community, citing a pattern of illicit and fraudulent actions perpetrated by her husband, Anis Blemur. According to reports, he preyed on members of his own community in real-estate and credit card scams, wire fraud, as well as embezzling funds from the political campaign of former Miami mayor Smith Joseph. Anis was sentenced to seven years in federal prison, and as the Miami New Times reported, “Investigators say he stole more than $1.6 million from victims in the Haitian community…”
Why would the Democratic establishment continue to support the controversial campaign of Naomi Blemur for Agriculture Commissioner? The risk to the entire Democratic Party ticket is evident, as Florida Republicans will not hesitate to attack every candidate connected to these potential political problems.
Over the weekend, leading Democrats, who should never have endorsed Blemur— or whatever her name is this week— in the first place started un-endorsing her, mostly because of her anti-Choice and anti-LGBTQ comments. Miami-Dade County Mayor Daniella Levine Cava, State Sen. Annette Taddeo and State Sen. Shevrin Jones rescinded their endorsements.
DailyKos correspondent SemDem had some important and pointed questions for the Florida Democratic Party:
Could the Florida Democratic Party do the BARE MINIMUM to vet a statewide candidate before going all in? Does GOOGLE not work in your offices? Do you even know what Twitter is?
Do you clowns not understand that if she is on our the statewide slate that gives the GOP open season for smearing ALL of our candidates with corruption? Do you want a statewide race against DeSantis and Rubio where they will make the race about her?
For agriculture commissioner, there are two other qualified candidates in the race for the Florida Primary held August 13-20:
J.R. Gaillot, a Haitian-American, is a Harvard-educated legislative director who was the Democratic nominee for Florida's 3rd congressional district
Ryan Morales is a small business owner and cannabis activist.
I couldn’t care less who you pick, but don’t pick Naomi.
One last thing. Florida is not a red state, but the GOP has taken full control because Democratic leaders in this state are so inept. We don’t capitalize on our constitutional amendments, the only progressive progress we have been able to make in the past decade. We cede rural areas, and take blue areas for granted. We allow the GOP to get a foot hold into our immigrant communities, whom they bash most of the year until election time. We leave our own Democratic candidate to fend for themselves. Oh—and do some damn research before backing someone next time.
I say this because we need to change. There are more Democrats in this state than Republicans, and I’m tired of losing. Florida is becoming an authoritarian playground, and we had better get our act together. Quick.
All of these Florida candidates are fully vetted, carefully... and if you’d like to help— the primary isn’t until August 23rd. And, like I said, this is probably a good time for us to reiterate that Blue America has endorsed J.R. Gaillot for Florida Agriculture Commissioner.
