By Dara Kam and Jim Turner, The News Service of Florida
TALLAHASSEE — In a stunning move less than a week before the scheduled end of the legislative session, Senate Minority Leader Jason Pizzo announced Thursday that he has left the Democratic Party and registered as a voter with no party affiliation.
Pizzo, who was quickly replaced as minority leader by Sen. Lori Berman, announced his move late Thursday afternoon on the Senate floor before the chamber adjourned for the weekend.
“Here’s the issue. The Democrat Party in Florida is dead. There are good people that can resuscitate it. But they don’t want it to be me,” Pizzo, who became minority leader after the November elections, said.
Pizzo, of Sunny Isles Beach, has been an outspoken critic of Democratic Party leaders as Republicans have dominated state politics. The GOP holds a large voter-registration edge, every statewide office in Florida and supermajorities in the Senate and House.
Pizzo had been viewed widely as a centrist since his election to the Senate in 2018 and had been speculated as a potential 2026 Democratic gubernatorial candidate.
An emotional Pizzo said Thursday he had submitted a form to change his voter registration to no party affiliation, or NPA.
“Our constituents are craving political leaders, not partisan hacks,” Pizzo said, crediting independent voters with boosting him into office. “I think stripping myself of the title of a party designation allows me to run free and clear, clean and transparent and help many, many more.”
Pizzo’s defection is the latest legislative loss for Democrats. Two House members — Susan Valdés of Tampa and Hillary Cassel of Dania Beach — switched to the Republican Party following the November elections. Democrats now hold 10 of 40 seats in the Senate; two seats are vacant.
While Pizzo did not join the GOP, his decision immediately drew harsh criticism from some Democrats.
“Jason Pizzo is one of the most ineffective and unpopular Democratic leaders in recent memory, and his resignation is one of the best things to happen to the party in years,” Florida Democratic Party Chairwoman Nikki Fried said in a statement.
Senate Democrats, however, were more restrained as they quickly regrouped by electing Berman as his successor shortly after the Senate floor session ended.
“We are doing well. We are all united. The Democratic Party is not dead,” Berman, D-Boca Raton, told reporters, noting that Democrats’ policies have gained national traction. “We have a week left (in the session). We’re gonna be strong. We’re gonna finish strong here in the Legislature.”
Pizzo made the announcement a day after a heated exchange on the Senate floor amid debate over water-services legislation involving Miami Gardens, a city with a large Black population, and North Miami Beach.
During Wednesday’s debate on the legislation (HB 11), Pizzo noted that he had been called “a racist” because of his opposition to the measure, which he said violated constitutional requirements.
“So here’s the deal, I follow the law. I read the plain reading of the law. And if anybody’s feelings are hurt and think I’m a racist for my position, suck it,” Pizzo said, dropping his microphone.
Sen. Shevrin Jones, D-Miami Gardens, battled Pizzo on the issue but said he didn’t think the former leader’s comments — which drew criticism on social media from some Black leaders in Miami-Dade County — played a role in his exit from the party.
“I don’t think that was the reason for it. I think that is something that the senator has been thinking about for quite some time. He operates independently,” Jones told reporters. “Jason is an independent thinker, and so while it was a surprise, I don’t think it changes my thoughts or belief about him and how he moves and how he’s led the caucus.”
Jones called Pizzo “a good man.”
“He is one of the smartest, brightest minds in this body,” Jones added.
During his remarks Thursday on the Senate floor, Pizzo, who reported a net worth of more than $59 million in 2023, acknowledged that he’s “been blessed” in life and conceded that he’s been criticized by people on both sides of the aisle.
“I care about people. I don’t care about politics. I care about my family and yours, not a title,” Pizzo said. “I’ve long had a feeling confirmed … that partisanship holds us back rather than propels us forward. Less gets done, not more more so.”
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Everyone should go NPA. The two parties have ruined the country, the state, county, city.
Funny Nikki Fried is talking about “ineffective and unpopular Democratic leaders”.
“Jason Pizzo announced Thursday that he has left the Democratic Party and registered as a voter with no party affiliation.” ……………………. Switching from Democrat to Independent does mean anything. It tells me that you are still a Democrat. Same if you were a Republican leaving the Republican Party. By not going Republican for the Bold Statement, you went Independent for the Brownie Points like Matlow did with their Pay Raise. He and Porter Voted NO for the Pay Raise KNOWING that Daily, Richardson and Cox were Voting For It so they would get the Brownie Point and STILL get the Pay Raise.
Besides starting the civil war, and the KKK, The Democrat Party is the party of Jim Crow, gender as a state of mind, open borders, illegal alien voters, and absurd policies like putting tampons in little boy’s bathrooms because one of them might get their period!
The real news here is Pizzo’s the only one leaving…
P.S. I bought an ax handle from Lester Maddox in Underground Atlanta, he was selling them out of a trash can while sitting in his rocking chair outside his restaurant. I paid him extra to sign it with a Sharpie then I told him I was gonna keep it as a reminder just in case I ever thought about voting for a dirty rotten democrat.