Robyn Hattaway enters State Senate race against Randy Fine

Next year's Republican primary for Florida Senate could heat up after former Port commissioner and attorney Robyn Hattaway filed to run for the open seat in District 19, positioning herself to campaign against fellow conservative Randy Fine.

Debbie Mayfield (R-Indialantic) currently represents District 19 in the Florida Senate, previously serving as Senate Majority Leader, and is unable to run again due to term limits.

Hattaway served as a Canaveral Port Authority commissioner for four years. This past year she ran for Florida House District 30, which covers portions of North Brevard and southern Volusia County, losing to Republican Chase Tramont of Port Orange in a primary election. Although this won't be Hattaway's first Republican primary race, it will be her first against Randy Fine, who is known for his brash comments on social media going after both Democrats and fellow Republicans alike, with his 2020 primary race against Marcie Adkins becoming one of the most contentious in the county.

“I’m ready for a fight but I’m not here to swing at anyone. I’m not here to pick a fight," Hattaway said. "I’m blessed to have the support of my family and confident and look forward to having conversations with whoever gets into the race on the future and making an impact on Brevard county."

She said she's focused on the issues that are driving her to run: "We need to continue our work on the lagoon, to consider a future with even lower crime rates and having excellent schools and a thriving economy where our businesses and schools are working together to crate a future for our kids."

More:NASA's historic crawler-transporter gets Guinness World Records recognition

More:Brevard school board places interim superintendent Robert Schiller on administrative leave

Although Hattaway emphasized that she hopes to build on the work of fellow conservatives such as Gov. Ron DeSantis, she also said she wants to focus on kitchen table issues such as jobs, education and public safety while "getting government out of the nonsense culture wars."

In saying that, Hattaway drew a contrast between herself and her opponent Fine, who has loudly carried the standard in Florida's culture wars, even using his Senate campaign announcement to decry "wokeism." Hattaway, meanwhile, said that "those aren't [her] priorities right now."

Although Hattaway emphasized her conservative bona fides of supporting small government, law enforcement and lower taxes, she drew the main contrast between herself and her opponent in terms of approach.

"We have different styles. I’m not a social media warrior and I like to set an example for my children in everything I do, whether that’s in person or online or volunteering in the community," she said.

She emphasized the importance of working with local businesses and the education system to ensure that there are job opportunities for students when they graduate, whether that's in the trades or for those who seek university degrees.

Rep. Fine (R-Palm Bay) currently represents District 33 in the Florida House and will leave office in 2024 due to term limits after serving four two-year terms. This week Fine was approached by Gov. Ron DeSantis about taking the job as president of Florida Atlantic University. While Fine did not receive a formal offer, he said he would seriously consider one if made. For now, however, he said he is focused on the legislature and has no plans to pause his run for Senate.

Tyler Vazquez is the North Brevard Watchdog Reporter at FLORIDA TODAY. Contact Vazquez at 321-917-7491 or [email protected]. Twitter: @tyler_vazquez

This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Robyn Hattaway enters State Senate race against Randy Fine