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Russell Roberts (Florida)
Russell Roberts (Republican Party) ran for election to the U.S. House to represent Florida's 7th Congressional District. He lost in the Republican primary on August 23, 2022.
Roberts completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. Click here to read the survey answers.
Elections
2022
See also: Florida's 7th Congressional District election, 2022
General election
General election for U.S. House Florida District 7
Cory Mills defeated Karen Green and Cardon Pompey in the general election for U.S. House Florida District 7 on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Cory Mills (R) | 58.5 | 177,966 |
 | Karen Green (D) | 41.5 | 126,079 | |
| Cardon Pompey (No Party Affiliation) (Write-in) | 0.0 | 10 | ||
| Total votes: 304,055 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary election
Democratic primary for U.S. House Florida District 7
Karen Green defeated Al Krulick, Tatiana Fernandez, and Allek Pastrana in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Florida District 7 on August 23, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Karen Green | 44.9 | 23,051 |
 | Al Krulick | 21.0 | 10,787 | |
 | Tatiana Fernandez | 20.0 | 10,261 | |
 | Allek Pastrana | 14.2 | 7,289 | |
| Total votes: 51,388 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Stephanie Murphy (D)
Republican primary election
Republican primary for U.S. House Florida District 7
The following candidates ran in the Republican primary for U.S. House Florida District 7 on August 23, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Cory Mills | 37.9 | 27,757 |
 | Anthony Sabatini | 23.7 | 17,332 | |
 | Brady Duke | 15.3 | 11,221 | |
 | Ted Edwards | 5.8 | 4,259 | |
 | Russell Roberts | 5.5 | 4,031 | |
 | Erika Benfield | 5.4 | 3,964 | |
 | Scott Sturgill | 4.2 | 3,094 | |
 | Al Santos | 2.1 | 1,504 | |
| Total votes: 73,162 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Jeremy Liggett (R)
- Joe Cavagna (R)
- Lee Ogilvie (R)
- Kristopher Stark (R)
Campaign themes
2022
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Russell Roberts completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Roberts' responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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As long-time Chief of Staff to former Congressman John Mica, I was personally involved in most of the major projects and programs benefiting Central Florida over a 20-year period.
In the private sector I was a Vice President of Brightline Trains, the privately funded high-speed passenger rail company serving the Miami to Orlando market and eventually Tampa.
I have the advantage of knowing this district better than any other candidate. My experience in the public sector and decade in the private sector as Vice President of a major private sector transportation company provides me the advantage of knowing how Washington works, how business thinks, and what’s important to our community, allowing me to immediately tackle the tough issues.
I am a common-sense, results oriented conservative with a passion for public service and the experience to make a difference in our community, state, and nation.
- Inflation is through the roof, the debt and deficit is rising daily. The last time Congress balanced the budget was when Republicans became the majority in 1994. We must get our fiscal house in order. We can do it again. I will work to reduce spending, reduce the size of government and file legislation to require each agency to repeal two regulations for each one new proposed regulation. The unchecked abuse of Executive Orders has weakened the Legislative Branch, giving too much power to the Executive. The Congressional Review Act empowers Congress to review and overrule regulations, but it is seldom used. I will fight to invoke Congressional Review and restore balance to the Constitutional framework of Separation of Powers.
- We must secure the border and complete the border wall. The current President is ignoring federal law with impunity. Gangs and other criminal elements are freely walking in bringing crime and drugs, pouring over the border. Fentanyl is killing thousands of Americans. Immigration reform is long overdue but securing our borders must be first priority. Both parties have been kicking the can down the road. A fair and orderly immigration system begins with a secure border.
- Americans are feeling less safe in their homes due to rising crime. Woke ridiculousness and misguided liberal bail policies have emboldened criminals. Prior to 2020 violent crime in America's major cities was on the decline. Now it has reversed course. The murder rate is the largest increase since the FBI began tracking the data in the 1960's. Most of the crimes are committed by the same career criminals rotating in and out of the system. Time to lock em up and throw away the key. I will fight to strengthen our criminal code.
As transportation leaders, it is our job to mitigate congestion through better technology and multi-modal solutions that goes beyond just roads. In Congress, I will bring that same commitment and vision to our national infrastructure programs.
Parallel to that, we need a common-sense energy policy, one that relies on our abundant domestic sources, produced by American energy companies, supplying energy to Americans. The root cause of our rising prices in gas, food and other commodities can be attributed to misguided policies designed to shut down the fossil fuel industry, increase transportation costs and force a rapid transition to electric cars.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Campaign website
Roberts' campaign website stated the following:
| “ |
Balance the Budget The last time our Congress passed a budget was after the Republicans took control of Congress in 1994. I was there working alongside our former Congressman John Mica as we developed fiscally responsible budgets that limited spending, reduced the size of government and enabled free markets to grow the economy and increase revenues. With a Republican Congress in 2022, we can do it again.
Our immigration system should be based on security first. Our President has ignored federal law as he pursues an open border policy that threatens American security and sovereignty. I support President Trump’s wall and as your Congressman, I will sponsor legislation to finish building it.
Woke stupidity and misguided liberal bail policies have emboldened criminals and terrorized honest hard-working Americans. I will fight to reverse these foolish policies and restore tough penalties for those who break our laws.
The best solutions to our education system come from parents and teachers. Parents have the right to know what schools are teaching their kids and deserve a say in their children’s education. I support school choice and support Governor DeSantis’ effort to promote parental rights in education.
I am committed to defending our Constitutional rights to defend ourselves and our families through the right to keep and bear arms.
Florida’s unique ecological balance is being threatened daily by human activity and development pressures caused by our rapidly growing population. Central Florida is home to precious natural springs, rivers, lakes and wetlands. As Congressman Mica’s Chief of Staff, I worked with him on major preservation projects, such as the Rose Bay restoration in Port Orange, and Gemini Springs and Green Springs preservation projects in west Volusia County. As your Congressman, I will support common sense solutions to restore and preserve these vital resources for future generations.
As Congressman Mica’s Chief of Staff, I worked with him in his successful fight to convert the former Orlando Naval Training Center hospital to a Veterans Administration Medical Center and to authorize construction of the new Veterans Hospital in Lake Nona. Together we helped bring the Emory Bennett State Veterans Nursing Home to Daytona Beach. As your Congressman, I will continue working on behalf of our Veterans to ensure the best medical care we can provide.
Under President Trump America was energy independent. Under President Biden we are purchasing oil from our enemies. Instead of reversing the ban on drilling in Alaska, the Gulf of Mexico and other federal lands, Biden is giving American tax dollars for oil to countries who would do us harm. All of this while bowing to the radical left who don’t understand that replacing oil production in the U.S with increased oil importation from foreign countries does not equate to a greener planet. Rather, it means enriching other economies while hurting American consumers and workers. I will fight to re-authorize construction of the Keystone pipeline and reverse the crippling restrictions on American oil and gas production that Biden instituted when he took office.
As an appointee of Governor Ron Desantis to the Florida Transportation Commission, I have played an important oversight role in how our Federal and State transportation dollars are allocated, working to ensure that safety, mobility, and economic prosperity remain our highest priority in Florida’s transportation systems. A healthy economy depends on good transportation systems. To get a good job you need an affordable way to get to that job. As transportation leaders, it is our job to mitigate congestion through better technology and multi-modal solutions that goes beyond just roads. In Congress, I will bring that same commitment and vision to our national infrastructure programs. I will continue the successful work of our former Congressman John Mica in improving and building a transportation infrastructure that meets the need of our fast-growing region and state. Serving as Congressman Mica’s Chief of Staff for two decades, I worked with him to fund and authorize major Central Florida projects such as the I-4 Ultimate expansion, the completion of the missing link of State Road 417/Eastern Beltway from the Orange County line to I-4 in Sanford, safety shoulders and widening of the SR 44 in Volusia County, replacing and widening the I-4 Bridge over the St. Johns River, widening of I-95 in Volusia County, Sanford Airport runway expansion, Sunrail startup, and more. As a Vice President of Brightline Trains, the private sector high-speed rail project from Orlando to Miami, I was a key initial player in bringing this innovative, world-class project from concept to reality. Beginning service in 2023, this intercity passenger rail will bring much needed economic benefits to our region and a much-needed mobility choice for business and leisure travelers. Private projects like Brightline do not rely on tax dollars and are operated more efficiently than publicly operated systems. In Congress, I will pursue policies that encourage private sector investment in transportation.[1] |
” |
| —Russell Roberts' campaign website (2022)[2] | ||
See also
2022 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ Rusty Roberts for Congress, “Issues,” accessed August 17, 2022
