All entries tagged with “Shelli Freeland Eddie”

Eddie's Opinion on Same-Sex Marriage Leads to Schism With Equality Florida

Posted by Jacob Ogles on Wednesday Jul 1, 2015 3:27 pm

Months after being endorsed by Equality Florida as a candidate for Sarasota City Commission, Shelli Freeland Eddie told the organization she feels personally opposed to same-sex marriage and asked that the organization stop publicly listing her as a supporter of its agenda. “Because of my faith, I should have not completed the survey responses the way I did, and I should not have accepted your endorsement,” Eddie wrote in an email to the political group.

The move spurred a public repudiation of Eddie by a number of liberals in the region, including many who supported her successful candidacy. “Shelli not only deceived the Equality Florida PAC with her answers on its candidate questionnaire, she deceived her campaign donors and she deceived the voters,” said Ken Shelin, co-chair of Equality Florida and a former Sarasota City Commissioner.

But Eddie told SRQ in an interview this morning that her opinions on gay marriage from a legal standpoint remain the same as reflected in the form. In light of the recent U.S. Supreme Court decision stating states cannot ban same-sex marriage, she felt a need to elaborate on her personal feelings beyond her responses in the candidate questionnaire. “I am also fighting for equal protection under the law for everyone,” she said. “But from a personal standpoint, decisions the court made are in personal contradiction with my faith.”

Eddie, who also said in the Equality Florida survey that she supported reproductive choice but now says she is personally pro-life, said there was an important distinction to be made between legal rights and personal opinions on morality. In the case of abortion, she said she still feels the government should not tell a woman what she does with her own body, but she holds a religious view that women should not terminate pregnancies. Such nuance, she said, was not reflected in the Equality Florida candidate survey or in the published responses from candidates. 

“I don’t want to put the organization in a place where they have questions on where I stand from a personal standpoint,” she said. 

The Equality Florida’s candidate information page simply lists a set of issues, including “Marriage Equality” and “Reproductive Choice,” with a check by candidates’ names on whether they support the issue. Under Eddie, all six issues have an affirmative checkmark.  

“People unfortunately just see same-sex marriage and see a check,” she said. “I personally don’t share that view. To anyone who feels betrayed, I apologize for that.”

Eddie also issued a statement further expressing regret at the way her message to Equality Florida was being received. “I apologize to Equality Florida for expressing my faith's views on same-sex marriage in a way that triggered, among some, a feeling of division, intolerance or betrayal. This was not my intention,” the statement reads. “Like many Americans, I am seeking guidance to reconcile my religious views on same-sex marriage with the recent Supreme Court ruling declaring same-sex marriage a constitutional right. Unfortunately, my attempt by email to distinguish between my religious views and my responsibilities as a public official expressed that struggle in a way that was insensitive to the LGBT community. My only intention in emailing you was to clarify that my commitment to uphold our laws, and to provide equal protection under the law for every individual, does not translate into my unqualified advocacy or support of your primary legislative goals of marriage equality among same-sex couples and abortion rights for women.”

Read more in tomorrow's edition of SRQ Daily.

Alpert, Eddie Pull Upsets in Sarasota

Posted by Jacob Ogles on Tuesday May 12, 2015 7:44 pm

Liz Alpert and Shelli Freeland Eddie have unseated incumbents on the Sarasota City Commission, according to unofficial election results. Alpert was running for Sarasota City Commission District 2 against appointed incumbent Eileen Normile, while Eddie was running against similarly appointed incumbent Stan Zimmerman.

With all precincts reporting, Alpert had 2,124 votes in the District 2 contest to Normile's 1,822. Eddie had 894 in the District 3 contest to Zimmerman's 774. Both were helped in the runup to Election Day by a concerted effort by the Sarasota Democratic Party and Democratic officials from outside the region. Normile and Zimmerman are both registered Republicans.

Two charter amendments also passed with over overwhelming majorities. One requires a candidate live in a district for a year before they can be appointed (that is already a requirement to be a candidate for election). The other more firmly sets a timetable for gathering petitions to put a measure on the ballot. Interestingly, the former was prompted largely by Eddie, who hadn’t been in the district a year when appointments were made in November but applied arguing she would meet the requirement by the time of the election..

Wooddall, Keen Campaigning Part Company Days Before Election

Posted by Jacob Ogles on Friday Mar 6, 2015 2:37 pm

Keen Campaigning announced of Friday that it was seperating itself from Matthew Wooddall, a candidate for Sarasota City Commission District 3. The move comes days before a Tuesday city election.

In a statement to media, Keen said the schism was caused when Wooddall described a different work history to a local media company than he did when relaying his biography to the campaign consultants. “We’ve satisfied and significantly exceeded our contractual obligations to Mr. Wooddall and helped him gain great credibility as a candidate,” the statement reads. “But when Mr. Wooddall provided newly conflicting information about his employment to a reporter before sharing it with us, he effectively made it impossible for us to continue advising him.”

Wooddall maintained he has always referred to himself as a freeland property manager, and that is has been pursuing certification on the side. During this campaign, he said, he has devoted nearly all of his time toward his campaign.

Keen also took issue with the fact Wooddall skipped a forum sponsored by the Sarasota County Council Of Neighborhood Associations, and Wooddall said he elected instead to attend a conflicting event put on in his district by the McIntosh Meadows association. "That was a choice I made as a candidate," Wooddall said. "If I didn't communicate to them properly or something was done in error, I accept responsibility."

Wooddall is one of three candidates running in District 3. Also running are incumbent Stan Zimmerman, who was appointed to the seat to fill a vacancy in November, and attorney Shelli Freeland Eddie.

Sarasota City candidates qualify; Shaw Wins Re-Election

Posted by Jacob Ogles on Friday Jan 9, 2015 11:21 am

We now know who is running this year for the Sarasota City Commission. Mayor Willie Shaw appears to have been elected unopposed as District 1 City Commissioner, as he is the only candidate who qualified... More »

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