GOP candidate risking Florida gerrymandered seat: 'Haven’t seen him around'

A Florida congressional district that the Republican-controlled legislature carved out to add to the GOP’s House total could end up in Democratic hands because the Republican candidate is barely campaigning.

According to the Washington Sun, Republican House candidate Casey Askar, a wealthy pizza franchise owner and entrepreneur, lives about a 5-mile drive outside the district he is running in. It’s one of four seats Florida Republicans redrew to favor their party.

Askar’s home "is an extravagant mansion where he cannot be seen, isolated behind a massive gatehouse," which the Sun's Oriana González said could "serve as a metaphor for his campaign" in Florida’s 22nd Congressional District. He isn’t especially visible there either, he has spent a lot of his own money, and he still might lose to Democrat Pia Dandiya, a former educator and Apple lobbyist.

“I haven’t seen him around here at all,” said Republican state Rep. Anne Gerwig, who represents Wellington, one of the largest municipalities in Palm Beach County. Palm Beach is one of four counties in the district.

The new GOP map eliminated one of South Florida’s largest Democratic seats, the majority-Black 20th District, once represented by former Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick. That district was created by a federal court in 1992 as a remedy for racial exclusion. It is one of four seats Gov. Ron DeSantis redrew in May to lean Republican, along with those held by Democratic Reps. Kathy Castor, Jared Moskowitz and Darren Soto.

The new 22nd District, called a “Frankenstein district,” was supposed to be a GOP-friendly blank slate, the report notes. It stretches from the western parts of Palm Beach and Broward counties into more rural, Republican-leaning territory in Hendry County and southern Collier County.

On paper, Askar looked like a "good fit" for Republicans with net worth between $97.5 million and $480.5 million but, according to the Sun, Askar has largely "left the field to Dandiya."

The GOP's Gerwig said friends on the district’s eastern side have Dandiya yard signs at their homes. Asked whether she had seen any for Askar, she said, “I haven’t seen them around here.”

On the western side, Marco Island resident Dave Shepard told the Sun he votes Republican “most of the time” but couldn’t name Askar “off hand.” He said he had seen plenty of yard signs for city council races, but none for Askar. None of the voters the Sun interviewed had attended or seen an Askar campaign event in their community.

Askar also doesn’t appear to have a campaign headquarters, the Sun reported. The only physical address in public records is a UPS Store P.O. box in Naples, outside the district, about 10 minutes from his house in the Port Royal neighborhood.

Nobody appeared to be home when a Sun reporter visited Askar’s house. He did not respond to a note left in his mailbox or to multiple attempts to reach him by phone and email.

"While Askar has been picturedat somelocal events, some only for registered Republicans, there are no public ones listed on his campaign website," the Sun reported, adding, "The Florida Republican Party and the four Republican county parties in the district did not have any events with Askar in the last week before the election, and a website listing events in Southeast Florida did not show anything with Askar."

Republicans have not released polling on the race. A September poll from House Majority PAC, the main Democratic House super PAC, found Dandiya leading Askar by 2 points.