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Senate panel OKs Taylor Hatch to lead DCF as Senate confirmation process begins

The 2026 Senate confirmation journey has begun for acting Department of Children and Families Secretary Taylor Hatch.

After failing to be confirmed by the full Senate during the 2025 session, Hatcher stood before members of the Senate Children, Families, and Elder Affairs Committee Tuesday recalling a message her pastor delivered as part of a sermon:

“Anchor yourself to who you want to be, and when it comes to work, anchor your identity before you analyze your circumstances.”

With that in mind, Hatch told the panel she’s a “daughter, a wife, a mom, and a leader who aims to honor God and the people I get to serve every single moment.”

As acting secretary, Hatch said, she’s “humble enough to never represent I have it figured out on my own and someone that intentionally works to not just hear others along the way, but to stop and to listen.”

Purple Heart veteran Luke Murphy joins fight to succeed Neal Dunn

A Purple Heart veteran is the latest Republican to head into the political fray in Florida’s 2nd Congressional District.

Luke Murphy, a retired Army Sergeant, announced he’s running to succeed retiring U.S. Rep. Neal Dunn. He shared stories of combat experience as he prepares to fight for the GOP nomination as an outsider.

“Career politicians in Washington don’t know anything about sacrifice. I did two tours in Iraq and both times I came home without some of my friends,” Murphy said.

“Those patriots believed in the idea of America, and they did not lay down their lives so weak politicians could bankrupt our grandkids’ future, ship our jobs overseas, and allow tens of millions of people to invade our country. President Trump understands this and he has those career politicians on the ropes. Change is underway. America is shining brighter than ever before and our best days are ahead.”

Murphy served in the National Guard from age 17, but was inspired after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks in 2001 to enlist in the Army and volunteer for infantry. He later was deployed to Iraq with the 101st Airborne Division, doing tours during the invasion in 2003 and returning as part of a nine-man reconnaissance team in 2005 and 2006.

Jim Boyd brings a statesman’s approach to Florida Senate leadership

Sen. Jim Boyd is the current Senate Majority Leader. Following the 2026 election, he’ll be the next Senate President, replacing current Senate President Ben Albritton at the end of his leadership tenure.

Both bring a statesman’s mentality to the job, an approach Boyd leans into, and will continue to emphasize over the two years he wields the gavel.

If you ask the Senate President-designate about his priorities as leader, you won’t hear a lot of overtly partisan commentary, though his conservative values are clear. He favors lower taxes, fewer business-killing regulations and an overall emphasis on ensuring Florida families are able to grow and thrive in the Sunshine State.

When his tenure as Senate President begins, Boyd will be leading the upper chamber in a new era of Florida politics, one that has yet to be defined: That is, Gov. Ron DeSantis won’t be Governor anymore, and voters don’t yet know who will succeed him next year.

“I view myself as a servant leader, and my goal and my desire in having the opportunity and privilege of leading the Senate is to work with my partner in the House and my partner in the Governor’s Office,” he said of the executive office uncertainty.

Christine Hunschofsky plans affordability focus as next House Democratic Leader

Parkland Rep. Christine Hunschofsky is set to become House Democratic Leader after the 2026 elections. It’s a pivotal time for the caucus, now years into an effort to escape a GOP supermajority.

As she prepares to take the proverbial baton, Hunschofsky wants the transfer to be seamless. That means continuing to advance priorities now pushed by current Leader Fentrice Driskell, led by affordability.

“We’ve been talking a lot about affordability for quite a while now, because that’s what we’re hearing at home,” she said, pointing to rising housing, property insurance and health care costs and a broader cost-of-living jump that wages haven’t matched.

Hunschofsky said she expects her agenda as Leader to evolve with events, but pointed to long-standing workforce issues, gun safety and mental health as core focuses.

The Florida chapter of the National Association of Social Workers named Hunschofsky its “Elected Official of the Year” in 2025, citing her legislative efforts to reduce barriers for school social workers, strengthen the state’s behavioral health system and allow social workers to practice across state lines.