The Korn Conundrum: Broward School Board At-Large candidate Donna Korn, who's already been removed by Gov. Ron DeSantis bec of a Grand Jury's recommendations, remains unpopular with the public and unable to defend her track record. But her opponent, Allen Zeman, is not just someone who is largely unknown, but has a troubling history of claiming things to be true that are NOT. Of actually lying with impunity. What should Broward County voters do?

The Broward County Public Schools HQ, home of the Broward School Board, long the hotbed of flat-out unethical behavior, egregious cronyism, and corruption of the sort that you seldom see in the 21st Century

The Korn Conundrum: Broward School Board At-Large candidate Donna Korn, who's already been removed by Gov. Ron DeSantis because of a Grand Jury's recommendations -which were not publicly released because several Board members fought their public release- remains unpopular with the general public and seems unable to defend her track record in-person. 

The problem for voters aas well as Broward County parents, students and taxpayers is that Korn's opponent, Allen Zeman, is not just someone who is largely unknown to the residents of Florida's fourth-largest county, but someone whom it fairly be said to have a troubling history of claiming things to be true that are... NOT. Some people even say he lies with impunity.

How many people do you know who'd claim that they'd been promoted to Admiral quicker than anyone in the history of the U.S. Navy? Who would even think of saying such a thing?

Tom Lauder of Red broward has been all over this story even as most of the South Florida news media have taken a pass on holding Zeman to account, to say nothing of asking why Korn is running for an office largely on a campaign based on campaign signs.. 

So, what should Broward County voters do?

*I'll be updating this post over the next 24-48 hours, as my first draft of this post crashed with some interesting info somehow not saved, so I'm basically reinventing the wheel on this. 😒

Here's a small look at how it's going thus far from my perch on the At-Large seat, watching with dismay that the choices are so dismal and unappealing.

And I haven't even posted my words and concerns about how many people I know who find the unappealing District One Broward School Board race between Marie Murray Martin, daughter of disgraced recent School Board member Ann Murray, subject of dozens of fact-filled columns here at the blog in the past, and Rod Velez, endorsed by The South Florida Sun Sentinel but someone not without his own ethical problems staring us in the face. 

That post re District 1 will be posted within the next week

Some of the most fervent and opinionated independent-minded education activists as well as Deep Blue Broward Democrats I know have told me that under no circumstances will they vote for any of these four candidates because they, literally, do NOT want to be blamed for having thrown them a lifeline. 

When I joked with them that they were engaging in a  little bit of pro-active election denialism -which is a favorite go-to subject on PBS' News Hour show- even BEFORE the votes are counted while the never-ending early voting takes place.

They laughed -weakly- at hearing that because they know how it makes them look sort of hypocritcal, but they literally want these four people to just... disappear.

Sort of like those Donna Korn campaign signs on high-traffic Hallandale beach Blvd. disappeared that I reference below, based on my own first-hand observations.

I'll have a column about the Murray vs. Velez race here within the week.

While some of you were sleeping the past few weeks...

 All from RED BROWARD @RedBroward:

September  21, 2022

“Admiral” Allen Zeman Tells Sun-Sentinel He Had “Admiral Rank”
https://redbroward.com/2022/09/21/admiral-allen-zeman-tells-sun-sentinel-he-had-admiral-rank/#comments

September 20, 2022
“Admiral” Allen Zeman Hired Roger Stone “Protégé” To Work On His Broward School Board Campaign
https://redbroward.com/2022/09/20/admiral-allen-zeman-hired-roger-stone-protege-to-work-on-his-broward-school-board-campaign/

August 19, 2022
Admiral Z-Man?!? Broward School Board Candidate Allen Zeman Says He Was “Promoted To The Admiral Rank Faster Than Anybody In The History Of The Navy.”
https://redbroward.com/2022/08/19/admiral-z-man-broward-school-board-candidate-allen-zeman-says-he-was-promoted-to-the-admiral-rank-faster-than-anybody-in-the-history-of-the-navy/

I'll be updating this post over the next 24-48 hours, as my first draft of this post crashed with some interesting info not saved, so I'm basically reinventing the wheel on this. 😒

Dave 

David B. Smith  

Hallandale Beach/Hollywood Blog: http://www.hallandalebeachblog.blogspot.com/ 

Twitter: @hbbtruth, https://twitter.com/hbbtruth/with_replies

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What exactly is the Broward Planning Council up to now regarding ending a means of public engagement on issues of great public importance?

@beamfurr

What is the reason that #Broward Co. Comm. is "exploring" removing

public's ability to participate + engage w/Broward Planning Council over a county

phone line? How is this a positive thing for residents/public? At 6:02 mark on video of July Broward Planning Council meeting.

https://vimeo.com/showcase/7896825?video=733993207

Today I'm sharing some news with you that I believe is both important AND interesting, which is not always the case. no?

This news is something that I first discovered by accident a few weeks ago while researching another City of Hollywood and Broward County public policy story I'm working on, the details of which will be posted here in the coming weeks for your careful perusal and consideration.

(I mentioned this news publicly for the first time last week on my popular Twitter feed, @hbbtruth. Obviously, I'm always looking for new people like you to begin Following me there on Twitter to keep up with things going on below-the radar and behind-the-scenes that I find out about or want to share before they appear here on my blog in a much-longer format.)

So, right now, for today at least, I'm NOT going to call the cavalry, point fingers, go off on a tangent, or otherwise make allegations that I can not substantiate.

Instead, I'm merely going to point you towards a very revealing Broward government-prepared video that I believe you should take a look at for yourself, where you are free to come to your own conclusions about what it might mean for the public and stakeholders' ability to communicate with government representatives, and make their voices heard on important issues of public concern involving tens of thousands of people, not to mention, their Quality of Life.

From what I have been able to gather, it looks like the professional staff of the Broward Planning Council -headquartered in the Broward County govt. bldg. on Andrews Avenue that also houses the elected Broward County Commission- and perhaps some members of the County Commission are VERY interested in pulling the plug on one of the ways that the general public can communicate with the 20 appointed members of the Broward Planning Council, who are largely elected officials from the thirty-something cities making up Broward County. As we know from experience, there are different rules for real estate developers and their army of lawyers, architects, planners and related helper minions.

 

As many of you longtime readers of this blog know, this appointed group is one that I have spoken to in the past involving very important development issues in Hallandale Beach that were being crammed down the throats of HB residents, taxpayers and stakeholders by the HB City Commission at HB City Hall. It being Hallandale Beach, this was often/usually done with only the mere pretense of public accountability, transparency or fairness that residents could have expected..

 

Shocker! This was done under the same HB mayor who is now ruling the roost there, Joy Cooper, who, somehow, got the great luck to have been given perhaps the dumbest jury in Broward County history a few years ago, who seem to have ignored a mountain of evidence and instead acquit her of multiple criminal charges, after she'd been arrested after being recorded repeatedly trying to get election campaign donations/payoffs from undercover FBI agents posing as real estate developers, in exchange for her help with votes on the dais involving development in the city.

 

As of now, barring any hurricanes in the interim, the next scheduled meeting of the Broward Planning Council is Wednesday September 22nd at 10:00 am in the Broward County Commission chambers. If I get any word, official explanation or not, for what's going on with the plug perhaps being pulled on citizens but not real estate developers, I'll post my update here!

Dave 

David B. Smith  

Hallandale Beach/Hollywood Blog: http://www.hallandalebeachblog.blogspot.com/ 

Twitter: @hbbtruth, https://twitter.com/hbbtruth/with_replies

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Breakdown of Broward County's registered voters two weeks before 2022 primary elections. As usual, voter apathy leads voter passion during the hot, humid summer months of South Florida

Breakdown of Broward County's registered voters two weeks before 2022 primary elections. As usual, voter apathy leads voter passion during the hot, humid summer months of South Florida.

As of today, two weeks before the 2022 Florida Primary election, with Early Voting scheduled to begin in Broward on Saturday the 13th, and with mail-in voting already taking place statewide, according to the Broward Superintendent of Elections office, while Democratic Party registered voters still outnumber Republicans in blue Broward County -where no Republicans serve on the nine-member Broward County Commission- a majority of the county's registered voters are NOT Democrats:

DEMOCRAT: 597,176
REPUBLICAN: 262,386
NPA: 361,595
OTHER: 19,626
TOTAL: 1,240,783
262,386 + 361,595 + 19,626 = 643,607

Compared to SOE figures of one year ago, August 7, 2021, below, this represents changes in the following:

Despite having competitive inter-party races for Governor and Senator, Democrats have lost 34,834 voters, roughly the population of Hallandale Beach.

For their part, Republicans have lost 5,954 voters in the 12 months before an election year with very strong GOP incumbents like Ron DeSantis and Marco Rubio, and no contested primary competition for either man to drum-up voter registration/turnout before November's general election.

NPA has gained 2,109 voters, many likely new Florida residents who have abandoned Northern blue lockdown states like New York and Illinois, as seems self-evident anywhere you go in Broward, judging by the number of out-of-state license plates from those states this time of the year, as opposed to The Season in a few months.

Voters registered as OTHER, yes, OTHER, has gained 950 voters.

The total of registered voters in Broward County has decreased by 37,729 voters in the last year.

Active Registered Voters in #Broward County #FL as of 8/7/21,
DEMOCRAT: 632,010
REPUBLICAN: 268,340
NPA: 359,486
OTHER: 18,676
TOTAL: 1,278,512

https://browardvotes.gov

Dave

David B. Smith  

Hallandale Beach/Hollywood Blog: http://www.hallandalebeachblog.blogspot.com/ 

Twitter: @hbbtruth, https://twitter.com/hbbtruth/with_replies

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Some preliminary thoughts about #Broward's 2021 #redistricting process. Final map gets voted on at what's likely to be a very spirited December 7th meeting, where some political careers may well be snuffed out

Some preliminary thoughts about #Broward's 2021 #redistricting process. Final map gets voted on at what's likely to be a very spirited December 7th meeting, where some political careers may well be snuffed out

Even as I was writing my first draft of this post this afternoon, I got word that an additional Broward County redistricting meeting has been scheduled for Saturday October 30, 2021 at 10AM, but it's... virtual. 🙄 Zut alors!

It's the last "public" meeting to comment before the last 4 draft maps are presented to the Broward County Commission for their thumbs up or down, scheduled for December 7th.

https://www.broward.org/Redistricting/Pages/public-meetings.aspx

My experience in the past is that the Sun Sentinel's Lisa Huriash is usually a fair-minded reporter, with a good sense of perspective re how simple or complicated an issue might be and what's necessary to present an accurate account of what's really at stake.

But here, on the issue of Broward reconfiguring its nine Commission districts, noticeably, she has failed badly. 

Also not mentioned is that Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis will be naming two interim Broward County Commissioners next month, as Barbara Sharief and Dale Holness had to resign in order to run in the #FL20 primary election that takes place two weeks from today, on November 2nd.

An election with nearly a dozen candidates where the winner will likely be someone who has failed to get 75%+ of the overall Democratic voters. Most of you longtime readers of the blog know that I hold both of these two Broward Commissioners in very low regard for their serial unethical machinations, serial poor judgment, and propensity for telling self-serving lies and half-truths, and general desire to play #IdentityPolitics at the worst possible times.

You never have to ask whether they are doing something for political reasons: they ARE.

Sharief's District 8 seat is up next November while the Holness' District 9 seat runs thru 2024, so my educated guess is that both seats will be on the ballot in just over a year, one for a full-term, and one to fill out the final two years.

You should start seeing articles next week about who DeSantis might choose and why.

Migration changes face of Broward, bringing new ideas and fresh flavors

By Lisa J. Huriash

October 11, 2021 

https://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/broward/fl-ne-broward-redistricting-minority-community-20211011-3tchgwqfirgmnj34pokfwsd3n4-story.html

There were and are some very obvious and important facts and relationships that, at a minimum, should have been disclosed to readers there, but which, for whatever reason, weren't.

That includes connecting-the-dots on some of the people she quotes who I know with certainty have glaring conflicts of interests as it affects the public and public policy, including on the matter of redistricting, but Huriash stays quiet as a church mouse, which is why I have included the piece by Red 

Broward blogger Tom Lauder that accurately connects-the-dots that Huriash chooses to ignore,

https://tamaractalk.com/city-attorney-applicant-didnt-disclose-25252/amp

If you can't access the Sun Sentinel article, let me know and I'll try to send a copy to you.

And yes, the Sept. 27 meeting I reference below is the one that was held at the Hollywood Library that I sent some of you an email about last month, before it took place, because there was no info about it anywhere in Hollywood, not even at the library itself, so the librarians knew nothing about it just two days beforehand.

Which is clearly not a good sign of the county's level of engagement on this.

Click screen grab below to enlarge!

By the way, before the public meeting was held, there was a preview meeting held by the FIU redistricting consultants that was largely composed of area local elected officials, so they'd have a better handle on what the process is supposed to be and the issues involved in creating districts that are roughly equal population-wise, though they're allowed to have up to a 10% variance.

I saw many familiar faces coming out of the room before I and a handful of other Broward citizens went in for the public meeting.

Above, the evening's moderator, FIU professor Dario Moreno, the county's lead consultant on redistricting.

Above, District 6 Broward Commissioner Beam Furr, an official Friend of the Blog. As per usual, we spoke for a bit on some local matters before the meeting started.

Broward Commissioner Steve Geller in center

Because facts matter, and are worth recalling: At least three members of the county commission in the past 20 years not lived in their districts – Ben Graber, Lois Wexler and Stacy Ritter. 

"The law requires your legal residence to be in the district, while apparently your physical body can sleep somewhere else." -Buddy Nevins at Broward Beat, Dec. 4, 2011

https://www.browardbeat.com/state-rep-marty-kiars-future-in-limbo-because-of-redistricting/

Broward Beat
Gerrymander! County Commission Carves Out A Seat For State Rep. Marty Kiar
BY BUDDY NEVINS
December 16, 2011

State Rep. Marty Kiar of Davie is “extremely likely” to run for the Broward County Commission after commissioners on Tuesday gerrymandered District 1 to include Kiar’s home.

The opportunity for Kiar suddenly surfaced late Tuesday when commissioners suddenly placed a tiny sliver of northwest Davie in District 1.  That section just happens to include Kiar’s home.

Districting boundary lines are not drawn by accident at the county commission. Somebody wants Kiar in the race, either the Commissioners Lieberman and Stacy Ritter who redrew the district or those behind the scenes…or both.

Read the rest of the post at

https://www.browardbeat.com/marty-kiar-extremely-likely-to-run-for-county-commission/

A reminder: After resisting getting a Facebook account for... well, years, because I could not be bothered with one with everything else I was already doing, I finally gave in last month and created a new platform for myself at https://www.facebook.com/DavidSmith0215/,

mostly so that I could finally read and comment on what i saw at the Hollywood Residents - Speak Up group page, https://www.facebook.com/groups/1023412084491625/ which I urge you to join if you are a Hollywood resident not already reading it.

Don't agree with everything there, of course, but it's a much better informed group that a random group of residents, and includes almost daily posts by people I know and trust who want this city to be MUCH-BETTER than it is and has been in recent years. Just like me.

Typically, I comment on both my page and the group page a few times a week, but I'm trying to allow a few days in-between posts, plus, I usually try to mention things that I don't necessarily mention in my popular group emails, here on my blog, or at the very repetitive and often innocuous Hollywood Nextdoor page, so consider checking me out there as well.

Also, if you add my current phone number to your contact list and use WhatsApp, you can even see my occasional commentary on things important and otherwise via the STATUS page, so consider that, too.

Links for the Tweet below that I screen grabbed are:

https://www.sun-sentinel.com/local/broward/fl-ne-broward-redistricting-minority-community-20211011-3tchgwqfirgmnj34pokfwsd3n4-story.html

https://tamaractalk.com/city-attorney-applicant-didnt-disclose-25252/amp

https://twitter.com/hbbtruth/status/1450580401177649152

Click screen grab below to enlarge!

https://www.broward.org/Redistricting/Pages/default.aspx

-news-re-hallandale-beach-cra.html?spref=tw

Some other Florida redistricting stories worth catching up on:

Miami Herald

Miami-Dade has - a new redistricting map: Let the fights begin over voting boundaries
Douglas Hanks; Staff Writer
October 3, 2021
https://www.miamiherald.com/news/local/community/miami-dade/article254682422.html

Understanding the Florida Legislature redistricting effort with former Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of Florida, Peggy Quince.

From WEDU-TV, PBS Tampa: Florida This Week, taped Sept. 24, 2021

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J18JOZdakDg

Florida lawmakers look to avoid running afoul of courts when redrawing districts
'My promise to you is … we will do this right,' one lawmaker said
John Kennedy, Capital Bureau
USA TODAY NETWORK-FLORIDA

Updated Sept. 22, 2021
https://www.heraldtribune.com/story/news/politics/state/2021/09/22/florida-republicans-follow-law-redistricting-census-political-lines-elections-legislature-2022/5821280001/

POLITICO Florida Playbook: The GOP’s redistricting promises
Tuesday, Sept. 21, 7:02 AM
BY GARY FINEOUT
https://www.politico.com/newsletters/florida-playbook/2021/09/21/the-gops-redistricting-promises-494407

Florida Trend

Senate kicks off redistricting process
Jim Turner | News Service of Florida | 9/21/2021
https://www.floridatrend.com/article/32208/senate-kicks-off-redistricting-process

South Florida Sun Sentinel 

Editorial
Political insult to S. Florida must be rectified
September 8, 2021
https://www.sun-sentinel.com/opinion/editorials/fl-op-edit-senate-snub-redistricting-democrats-20210908-3pn5acch7rf3jocg3vujvaksim-story.html

Dave 

Hallandale Beach/Hollywood Blog: http://www.hallandalebeachblog.blogspot.com/ 

Twitter: @hbbtruth, https://twitter.com/hbbtruth/with_replies

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Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/david-bruce-smith-b945b376/

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Oops!... She did IT again! #LaurenBook plays #SoFL news media + #HollywoodFL for chumps -yet again! Folks, she's NOT on your side. EVER! She's on HER side. Period! But she's perfectly happy for you to think she's noble as she helps herself to your tax dollars AGAIN!

Oops!... She did IT again! #LaurenBook plays #SoFL news media + #HollywoodFL for chumps -yet again! 

Folks, she's NOT on your side. EVER! 

She's on HER side. Period! 

But she's perfectly happy for you to think she's noble as she helps herself to your tax dollars AGAIN!

Per the Florida Bulldog story below about Hollywood taking it on the chin yet again, since I've written so accurately about her so many times in the past as she has sought to make the political the personal and the personal the political, on Monday I'll be posting a fact-filled blog post on Florida state Senate Democratic Leader Lauren Book's latest antics in Tallahassee involving taxpayer dollars going where SHE wants them to go, and the larger societal issue of the optics of her long standing ethics problems, and the abject refusal of #SoFL news media -and larger society- to ever hold her to account publicly.

In many cases, for the very same reasons that so many of you already know and have 

shared with me over the years that SO vex and frustrate you and me alike.

It's like she has a hall pass that never expires.

It's a sad reality: Nobody with any kind of power in South Florida will publicly tell her NO!

Tell her that nobody is fooled by what she's doing and the way she continually justifies 

her public behavior on the public dime.

Which, of course, is, perhaps, the most galling aspect of her whole persona and shtick, no?

1/ #LaurenBook plays #SoFL media + #HollywoodFL for chumps -yet again! Folks, she's NOT on your side. EVER! She's on HER side. Period! But she's perfectly happy for U to think she's noble as she helps herself to yr tax dollars AGAIN! https://floridabulldog.org/2021/05/new-senate-democratic-leader-lauren-book-conflict-of-interest/… #ethics #transparency

New Senate Democratic Leader Lauren Book has conflict of interest as Republicans quietly shower taxpayer millions on her charity  

https://www.floridabulldog.org/2021/05/new-senate-democratic-leader-lauren-book-conflict-of-interest/

2/ My blog post on her is coming Monday! MT

@Florida_Bulldog

: Why did new #FL state Senate Minority Ldr. #LaurenBook strip much needed $ fm more-diverse #HollywoodFL to give it to less-diverse #DavieFL? It's represented by her lobbyist father, #RonBook! #ethics #transparency

Dave 

Hallandale Beach/Hollywood Blog: http://www.hallandalebeachblog.blogspot.com/ 

Twitter: @hbbtruth, https://twitter.com/hbbtruth/with_replies

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/hbbtruth/ 

Linkedin: linkedin.com/in/david-bruce-smith-b945b376/

Travel Massive: https://travelmassive.com/dbsmith