Florida Democrats Get Caught Playing Dirty in HD 87

A dirty-text scandal in Florida HD 87 is giving voters a clear look at how desperate Democrats have become.

Mar 23, 2026

A Palm Beach special election was already shaping up as a test of whether Republicans could hold a seat President Trump carried and local Democrats desperately wanted to flip. Then voters got a text message that turned the whole thing into something uglier. #Florida

The Text Message That Blew Up the Race

According to Florida Politics, voters in House District 87 received a text attacking Republican Jon Maples with an obviously artificial image that placed him in front of a rundown motel. The message pushed residency claims, repeated false tax allegations, and tried to paint him as some kind of fake Republican. Because apparently a normal campaign contrast was just not dramatic enough.

The problem is not just that the text was nasty. The problem is that it appears tied to the Democratic operation backing Emily Gregory. Florida Politics reported that the political committee Lift-Off Florida paid for the text, and that same committee has paid Blue Velocity Consulting, which also works for Gregory's campaign. The outlet further reported Blue Velocity also works for incoming House Democratic Leader Christine Hunschofsky.

That does not look accidental. It looks like a political machine doing what political machines do when the numbers are not going their way.

Why Republicans Are Calling It Race-Baiting

Florida House Speaker-designate Sam Garrison did not mince words. He told Florida Politics he was "stunned" and rated the tactic a "13 on a scale of 10" for disgusting campaigning. That is not the language of somebody mildly annoyed by a hard-hitting mailer. That is the language of somebody looking at a line that should not have been crossed.

Maples responded with more restraint than the people who targeted him. He said the image was offensive, then added, "We are called to be the light in dark places. That's how I started this race, and that's how we're going to finish it."

That is a smart answer. It also lets voters notice the contrast for themselves.

What the reporting says

Florida Politics said the text used a manipulated image showing Maples in front of a run-down location that did not match the apartment address listed in election documents.
The same report said the text claimed Maples voted to raise taxes in 2023, 2024, and 2025. Florida Politics called that false.
CBS12 reported Gregory has also been pressing Maples over residency and whether he is properly registered in the district.
Maples told CBS12 he lives in the district, is registered there, and that he and his wife had closed on a new home in Jupiter before Election Day.

So yes, there is a real dispute over residency. But there is a world of difference between reporting on a legal question and dressing it up with racially charged imagery and talking points that do not hold up.

The Bigger Political Problem for Democrats

Here is the thing nobody's talking about enough: this district was not a random pickup opportunity. It has been trending Republican. Florida Politics noted former Rep. Mike Caruso won reelection there by 19 points in 2024, while President Trump carried the district by 9 points. That matters.

When a district leans your way, you campaign on issues and turnout. When it leans the other way, weaker operations start looking for shortcuts.

Maples is also not some mystery candidate who wandered in off the street. Reporting cited by Florida Politics says he has longstanding ties to the area, attended Palm Beach Atlantic University, owns a local business, and has support from President Trump and Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier. He also served as a Trump delegate at the 2024 Republican National Convention.

You do not have to pretend every residency question is fake to see what is happening here. Democrats had a legitimate line of attack available. They chose to wrap it in ugliness. Why? Maybe because a clean argument was not enough.

Follow the Money, Then Follow the Excuses

The funding picture also helps explain the panic.

Florida Politics reported Maples and allied support had significantly outraised Gregory's effort, with major in-kind support from the Florida House Republican Campaign Committee. Gregory's side has been competitive enough to stay in the fight, but still trails. In a race where money, momentum, and Trump-world support are already favoring the Republican, a late hit piece starts to look less like confidence and more like desperation.

And now Democrats have a choice.

Do they condemn the tactic clearly? Do they explain the overlap between Gregory's consultants and the committee behind the text? Do they deny coordination? Or do they do the usual dance where everyone suddenly forgets how campaign infrastructure works the moment a dirty trick becomes public?

You already know where this is going.

What Voters Should Remember

This race is about more than one ugly text.

It is about whether voters in HD 87 want a representative backed by President Trump and the conservative movement, or whether they want a Democratic machine that cries foul when it suits them and goes silent when its own side gets caught with its hand in the mud.

If Democrats had confidence in their candidate, they could have made their case without the race-baiting. They did not. That tells you plenty.

The cleanest takeaway is also the simplest one. If your campaign strategy depends on manipulated imagery, false claims, and consultant overlap that smells bad from across the room, maybe the problem is not your opponent. Maybe the problem is your campaign.

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