Florida state Rep. Susan Valdés announced on Monday that she is leaving the Democratic Party and joining the Republican Party just one month after being reelected as a Democrat.
In a statement shared on X, formerly Twitter, Valdés explained that she has worked to “give a voice to the people” of West Tampa as a member of the Democratic Party.
“In the House, I have long known that no one has a monopoly on good ideas,” Valdés wrote. “I will not waste my final two years in the Florida Legislature being ignored in a caucus whose leadership expects me to ignore the needs of my community.”
The state representative added, “Effective immediately, I will change my registration from a Democrat to Republican and will join the Republican Conference in the Florida House of Representatives.”
In her statement, Valdés said that Florida House Speaker Daniel Perez, a Republican, has outlined a “vision” that will help state lawmakers “work on real problems facing our communities.”
“That’s what I want to be a part of. I want to roll up my sleeves and work. I want to be a part of solving problems for West Tampa,” Valdés stated. “I’m tired of being the party of protesting when I got into politics to be part of the party of progress.”
READ MORE: Pic: Top senator leaves Democratic Party
While Valdés admitted that she will not agree with Republicans on every policy issue, she believes she will be welcomed and respected by the party. The former Democrat concluded her statement by promising that she will “continue to fight every day to benefit the people of West Tampa, Hillsborough County and the state of Florida” and explaining that the best way for her to do that is by joining the “Republican supermajority in the Florida House of Representatives.”
Following Valdés’ decision to join the Republican Party, Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.) tweeted, “Welcome to the GOP, Rep. Valdes!” He added, “Congrats to Speaker Daniel Perez on the biggest Republican majority in the history of the Florida House!”
Fox News reported that the Florida lawmaker’s decision to leave the Democratic Party came shortly after she lost her bid to serve as the chair of the Hillsborough County Democratic Executive Committee.
In a Facebook statement shared by the Hillsborough County Democratic Party, Hillsborough County Democratic Party Chair Vanessa Lester said, “While it remains disturbingly unclear whether she was entertaining the switch to become a Republican even as she was running to lead the local Party, ultimately it is her constituents in District 64 who have the most reason to be upset and betrayed. They voted for a Democrat to fight for them and ended up with a political opportunist who abandoned them.”
