| Where the hell is Casey Askar?
New reporting from the Washington Sun reveals that Casey Askar “is not especially visible, has spent a lot of his own money and still might lose to his Democratic opponent, Pia Dandiya.”
Across the board, Floridians are reporting that Askar is nowhere to be found on the campaign trail, with even Republicans saying they couldn’t even name Askar “off hand,” while others claim they “haven’t seen him around here at all.”
While Askar continues to hide from Florida voters, momentum is clearly on Pia Dandiya’s side as she hosts over 70 meet and greets with voters, outraises Askar in grassroots donations in the third quarter, and leads Askar by over 5 points in Republicans’ own internal polling.
DCCC Spokesperson Madison Andrus:
“While Casey Askar hides from voters to avoid answering questions about his shady business dealings and support for data centers in Florida’s communities, Pia Dandiya is talking with voters about the issues that matter most to them. In less than one week, those same voters are going to send Pia to Congress to fight for lower costs for their families and clean up the corruption in Washington that Askar represents.”
Read more:
Washington Sun: Republicans Made This Florida District Red. Their Candidate May Keep It Blue.
- Republican U.S. House candidate Casey Askar, a pizza maven and entrepreneur, lives about a 5 mile drive from the district where he is running, one of four that the Florida state GOP redrew to favor their party.
- His home is an extravagant mansion where he cannot be seen, isolated behind a massive gatehouse. The residence could serve as something of a metaphor for his campaign for Florida’s 22nd Congressional District, where he also is not especially visible, has spent a lot of his own money and still might lose to his Democratic opponent, Pia Dandiya.
- “I haven’t seen him around here at all,” said Republican Florida state Rep. Anne Gerwig. She represents Wellington, one of the largest municipalities in Palm Beach County, one of four counties encompassed by the 22nd District.
- The 22nd District, a so-called “Frankenstein district,” was supposed to be a GOP-friendly blank slate stretching from the west sides of Palm Beach and Broward counties into Republican-leaning territory in more rural areas and into Hendry County and southern Collier County.
- What looks good on the surface, however, doesn’t always translate. When the Cook Political Report moved the race from “lean Republican” to “toss-up” in September, the analysts pointed out Trump would have lost it by three points in 2020. And 2026 is looking a lot more like that year.
- Then there’s the problem of Askar’s campaign style. The candidate Republicans picked to fill that blank slate seems to be, well, leaving it blank, ceding the public spaces to Dandiya, a former educator and Apple lobbyist on education issues.
- For instance, Gerwig told The Washington Sun that her friends in the area have yard signs for Dandiya “at their homes” in the eastern side of the district. Asked whether she had seen any signs for Askar, she said, “I haven’t seen them around here.”
- Dave Shepard, a resident of Marco Island south of Naples, a Republican stronghold on the western side of the district, said he votes for Republicans “most of the time” but that he could not name Askar “off hand.” He told The Sun he had seen plenty of political yard signs for city council races but hadn’t noticed any for Askar. None of the voters interviewed for this story said they had attended or seen an Askar campaign event in their community.
- Askar also does not appear to have a headquarters for his campaign, with the only physical address available on public records being a UPS Store P.O. Box in Naples outside of the district, about a 10 minute drive from Askar’s house in Naples’ Port Royal neighborhood.
- No one appeared to be home when a Sun reporter went to Askar’s house, and he did not respond to a note left in his mailbox after multiple attempts to reach him by phone and email.
- While Askar has been pictured at some local events, some only for registered Republicans, there are no public ones listed on his campaign website. 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.
- One Democratic operative, who was granted anonymity to talk about campaign opposition research strategy, told The Sun that even political trackers paid to trail candidates are having a hard time finding Askar because of his lack of public appearances.
- The campaign knows it has a problem, at least judging by what the candidate has said out of sight. In an audio recording obtained by The Sun from a mid-October voter meet and greet in Broward County organized by a local Republican group, Askar said that an internal poll conducted with the National Republican Campaign Committee against Dandiya found him “down about five and a quarter points.”
- Askar’s physical absence and media shyness is costing him more than local recognition.
- Michael Napoleone, the Republican mayor of Wellington, broke with his party and endorsed Dandiya. He said part of the reason he did so was because Askar has refused to respond to news outlets’ requests for comments and interviews.
- It “is very telling to me sometimes because more and more often, certain people, they just don’t want to respond to valid questions that voters want to know the answer to,” Napoleone said. “That does a disservice to the voters if you’re not willing to sit down and answer what might be hard or uncomfortable questions.”
- Worley argued a campaign that relies mainly on television advertising without a ground game, “90% of the time, that does not work.”
- Most of Askar’s TV ads, as well as those from outside groups, have focused on attacking Dandiya. They appear to have helped the Democrat’s name recognition rather than his own.
- Dandiya…has been trying to fill the hole left by Askar, holding many more events and out-raising him significantly through traditional fundraising. In the third quarter, Dandiya hauled in more than $1.3 million compared to $321,000 for Askar.
- Dandiya said that she has done over 70 meet and greets with voters “and I am so grateful to have met those folks in the community and to understand their needs.”
- “That’s been essential because how are we going to know what to fix and how to fix it if we’re not talking to people and listening to people?” she added. “My opponent has not been very visible in the district. … That seems to be the theme of his campaign, that he wants to not really be a representative; he wants to be a rubber stamp for Trump.”
- Dandiya held a rally Monday in Plantation with former Secretary of Transportation Pete Buttigieg, a potential presidential candidate in 2028. He’s one of multiple Democratic surrogates that have traveled to the district, including potential 2028 contender Rahm Emanuel and Reps. Jamie Raskin and Suzan DelBene, the chair of House Democrats’ campaign arm.
- Democrats say they are feeling bullish about their chances in the district, even with redistricting.
- “This district was drawn specifically in order to give an unfair advantage to Republicans,” Buttigieg said. “Instead of trying to persuade the voters, their strategy is to rearrange the voters so that they can pick their voters instead of the other way around. But I think we’re going to win anyways and when we do it, it will send a very powerful message out to those guys.”
- “Think about the shock waves that will radiate through this country when we win in this district,” he added.
- Trump held a rally in the neighboring district to boost GOP turnout in the state last Friday.
- Askar wasn’t visible there, either.
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