Unexpectedly, LGBT issues have become pivotal in the race to replace retiring Orange County Mayor Richard Crotty. The non-partisan runoff election between former Commissioner Teresa Jacobs, a Republican, and sitting Commissioner Bill Segal, a Democrat, has turned into a classroom on the complexities of Central Florida politics.
Jacobs has often been an independent voice in local politics, and she rode a wave of partisan and non-partisan votes to a clear plurality in the Aug. 24 primary that eliminated Commissioner Linda Stewart and businessman Matthew Falconer. Segal placed a distant second, and clearly needs to corral the votes of local Democrats, who slightly outnumber Republicans, to win.
Enter the LGBT community. On Sept. 14, Segal called for a stepped-up effort to pass sweeping countywide non-discrimination protections. Meanwhile, Jacobs has fine-tuned positions many perceive as oppositional to LGBT equality. Both covet the endorsement of Stewart, who finished third in the primary with widespread LGBT support.
In 2006, county commissioners—including Jacobs, Segal and Stewart—voted to include “sexual orientation” in a Fair Housing Ordinance. Stewart has since pressed for expanded protections embracing employment, public accommodations and more. Crotty has consistently refused to advance formal consideration, citing cost concerns and punting the issue to state and federal government.
“I do not believe it is the right time to have our staff workshop this issue,” Crotty wrote in a memo to Stewart in April.
Months ago at an LGBT election forum, Segal refused to join Stewart in repeated calls to workshop the measure. Now he says the dynamic is more compelling, with Stewart on the way out and two new commissioners on the way in.
“It is now the standard for forward-thinking communities to establish comprehensive Human Rights Ordinances,” Segal said in his memo to Crotty. “The present and future residents of Orange County deserve these same protections.”
Segal asked that an HRO be considered “as soon as possible,” and that the workshop include making domestic partner benefits available to county employees.
“He’s pandering,” Jacobs campaign manager John Dowless told the Orlando Sentinel. “He did nothing for six years, and now he’s trying to make up for it in six weeks.”
In an Aug. 12 interview with Watermark, Jacobs stated that she is “largely undecided” about a countywide HRO. “I struggle with the issue of requirements for private employers, especially in this economy,” she said.
But on Sept. 5 she told the Sentinel that if elected she would schedule a workshop about a Human Rights Ordinance quickly.
Regarding domestic partner benefits, Jacobs told Watermark that she is “still wrestling” with the idea.
“I want to know the cost,” she said, “and I want to know how we ensure these are bona fide relationships.”
Stewart has yet to endorse either candidate, but she welcomed Segal’s call to action.
“If we can get four people to ask for a workshop, the Mayor has to grant one,” she said.
She contacted Watermark to encourage readers to e-mail the entire county commission and Mayor Crotty to request that a workshop on a countywide HRO be scheduled immediately.
“It’s late, but it’s not too late,” Stewart said.
