Omari Hardy gets Post Endorsement

Post endorses: Skidmore, Hardy, Domino in Florida House primaries

First of all, congratulations to our friend, Carl Domino, for getting the Palm Beach Post endorsement.

Omari Hardy got the Sun Sentinel endorsement as well as the Post's. He is the only candidate who showed up for the interview. Why anyone running for office would ignore the invitation to meet with the Post's Editorial board is a mystery. I have reprinted the portion of the article pertaining to Hardy.

HOUSE DISTRICT 88: Incumbent Rep. Al Jacquet has poorly served this district, which was mapped out to favor Black representation — missing meetings, dodging constituents and racking up fines for failing to complete campaign reports on time. He hit a notable low by hurling a gay slur at one of his opponents.

Four other candidates are hoping to send him packing in the Democratic primary. Our pick is Omari Hardy, 30, an educator with the West Palm Beach Housing Authority. Hardy is also a Lake Worth Beach city commissioner whose profile soared on social media for a heated flare-up with other officials over utility shutoffs when the pandemic hit. Since then, he’s been at the center of combustible discussions over racism and policing in the city. He led an unsuccessful push to rename Dixie Highway because of its connotations with the Confederacy.

As a state representative, Hardy says his first priority is to be “more present and lucid” than Jacquet. Further, he will push for more public education funding, investing in public broadband to shrink the digital divide, expanding Medicaid, and making housing more affordable through concepts he says are working in other states.

The other candidates — former Riviera Beach councilman Cedric Thomas, radio personality Philippe “Bob” Louis Jeune, lawyer Siena Osta, and Jacquet himself — did not respond to the Editorial Board’s invitation for an interview.