“I am a Republican first because of my love for what President Abraham Lincoln did to save our country and how he did it.” Chip LaMarca | 50
Chip LaMarca, R-Lighthouse Point, at the Capitol in Tallahassee.
116 | INFLUENCE SPRING 2019
Chip LaMarca is a Broward County Republican. In fact, he’s the only Republican in the heavily Democratic County’s legislative caucus. So, his political stands are a little more moderate than those of other GOP legislators. He recognizes the need to respond to rising sea levels. He’s on the record in support of marriage equality. Which is not to say LaMarca’s a liberal. “I am a Republican first because of my love for what President Abraham Lincoln did to save our country and how he did it,” LaMarca told Florida Politics. “Secondly, because I watched candidate Gov. Ronald Reagan in the 1980 presidential debates and knew that he represented my beliefs in government.” So, while he counts himself among “the growing majority that cares about our environment, water quality and the future of Florida’s Everglades,” he’s also keen on keeping Florida business friendly. LaMarca, who lives in Lighthouse Point with his wife, Eileen, won the election in November to take over for term-limited former Rep. George Moraitis. His District 93 seat covers northern coastal Broward and slightly tilts toward the GOP. He first got his feet wet in party politics by joining the Young Republicans when he attended Florida Atlantic University in the late 1990s and, after years of working his way up the Broward GOP ladder, he won two terms on the County Commission. LaMarca passed on another commission term to run for state House because he wanted “retain the last Republican seat on the Broward delegation.” “I come from the second most populous county in the state, and the people of Broward County should have a voice in the majority party,” he said. The South Florida Sun-Sentinel agreed with that logic when it endorsed LaMarca for the seat. His legislative priorities include cutting government spending; increasing funding for beach management; and protecting “our children and families, as well as supporting our first responders who do this work every day.” A somewhat unique characteristic of LaMarca’s political ethos is his “no lobbyist” policy, which has kept him informed but not unduly influenced. He plans to continue that policy during his state House tenure. “I have and will continue to say ‘No’ when necessary.”