He’s taking on Fox News and The Miami Herald. His ocean-drenched campaign spots are all over South Florida televisions.
South Florida Democratic socialist and congressional candidate Oliver Larkin is making a lot of noise in the District 25 race — whether it translates into votes remains to be seen until the Democratic primary on Aug. 18.
Larkin, 34, is looking to upset incumbent U.S. Rep. Jared Moskowitz, trying to create the same electoral magic of his peers in New York City, Michigan, Colorado and Washington.
“It’s a populist message. It’s not a crazy idea that we should have universal child care, paid family and medical leave, Medicare for all, especially when you look at other peer nations of the United States,” Larkin said in an interview Aug. 11.
Moskowitz refuses to even engage with his challenger because Larkin calls himself an anti-Zionist and supports ending the U.S. supply of arms and aid to Israel. “I’m not going to platform him. He’s running against me solely on my religion,” Moskowitz, who is Jewish, told Miami’s WLRN in July.
Moskowitz, who chose not to comment for this story, has out-raised Larkin 11-to-1 and has blanketed social media and television with ads.
Larkin started getting some traction after he tapped into the outrage machine of conservative news programs where it appears democratic socialists are like catnip to these hosts.
“I think they’ve invited me on so often because they think that they’re going to paint me out to look like some ridiculous, unserious person,” Larkin said. “I do have strong convictions, but it’s grounded in what I think is really broad-based and popular.”
When he appeared for an interview with Fox News host Trace Gallagher on Aug. 1, Larkin was asked how many children abused by illegal immigrants were acceptable. He turned it around and said the real question was when Congress would hold President Donald Trump accountable and release the Epstein files.
Fox News immediately terminated the interview. The clip has topped a million views on Instagram.
The following week, the centrist New Democratic Majority put $250,000 into advertisements to support Moskowitz.
“I don’t think they would be spending that much money if they didn’t feel that Moskowitz wasn’t seriously being challenged,” Larkin said.
Who are the Democratic socialists running for office in Florida?
The Fort Lauderdale native describes himself as a progressive organizer. He worked for the U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders 2016 presidential campaign. Democratic socialist candidates have created a stir every since New York Mayor Zohan Mamdami became the mayor of New York City.
Larkin isn’t the only democratic socialist running in Florida. State Rep. Angie Nixon is running for U.S. Senate, and state Rep. Dotie Joseph of northern Miami-Dade County is running for governor.
Republicans are painting these candidates as extremists. “Their party is now owned by communists,” said Florida GOP Chair Evan Power in a social media post.
Moskowitz and Larkin are looking to face one of five Republicans vying in the GOP primary. Former Boca Mayor Scott Singer is outpacing his opponents in fundraising and has ads airing embracing President Trump, who has historically low approval ratings.
After the Florida Legislature’s redistricting, District 25, hugs the coast from Delray Beach to Miami Beach. As a result, it is 25% Jewish with a high concentration of Holocaust survivors.
The Herald, in its editorial endorsing Moskowitz, said that anti-Zionism is anti-Semitic. Larkin disagrees, saying that treating the U.S. Jewish voters as monolithic and in full support of Israel and its current policies is a miscalculation.
“I approach this with a great deal of sensitivity. I am very vocal in my opposition to anti-Semitism,” he said. “This is a policy that is going to save lives in Israel and Palestine. I do not want to see the United States party continue.”
Larkin said after his first appearance on Fox News, donations started flowing, totaling $300,000 in August. So, no surprise, Larkin jump at the opportunity to be a guest on Sean Hannity’s show on Tuesday, Aug. 10.
“If Oliver Larkin had his way, there would be Medicare for all, no more Electoral College, automatic same-day voter registration, an immediate shift from fossil fuels,” said Hannity in his list of horribles.
There was a reason Larkin smiled throughout the combative interview.
“When he was listing all of my policies, I mean that’s free advertising for me,” he said. “We put it on social media, and it’s been one of our top performances.”
John Pacenti is the Government Impact Reporter for The USA TODAY NETWORK-FLORIDA. You can get all of Florida’s best content directly in your inbox each weekday by signing up for the free newsletter, Florida TODAY, at https://palmbeachpost.com/newsletters.
This article originally appeared on Florida Today: Can Florida Democratic socialist Larkin upset U.S. Rep. Moskowitz?
Reporting by John Pacenti, USA TODAY Network-Florida / Florida Today
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By John Pacenti, USA TODAY Network-Florida | USA TODAY Network
