Stephanie Murphy declares candidacy for Orange County mayor

Yahoo

09-07-2025

Former U.S. Rep. Stephanie Murphy, a Democrat who forged a reputation for bipartisanship during her tenure in Congress, declared her candidacy today to succeed Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings, likely becoming the front-runner to lead Florida's fifth-largest county.
Murphy, 46, said she has the experience and leadership skills to navigate a bitterly divided political landscape.
'One of the important reasons to have strong leadership at the local level is because of what is happening at the federal and state level,' she said. 'I think you need leaders who have demonstrated the ability to work with anybody who's willing to work with them.'
Her declared opponents include Orange County Clerk of Courts Tiffany Moore Russell and Orange County Commissioner Mayra Uribe, both Democrats, and tech entrepreneur Chris Messina, a Republican.
Former Congresswoman Val Demings, a rumored candidate to succeed her husband, announced last month she would not run.
Murphy had served as a civilian national security specialist in the U.S. Department of Defense and as a business instructor at Rollins College when Democrats chose her to take on 24-year GOP incumbent stalwart John Mica in 2016 and she narrowly won in a upset.
She made history as the first Vietnamese-American woman elected to Congress.
In her final year in Congress, she served on the Jan. 6 Committee investigating the attack on the U.S. Capitol by supporters of President Donald Trump, who denied he lost the 2020 election. She voted with committee members to recommend prosecution of Trump.
Murphy left her House seat by choice.
Murphy leaves Congress as bipartisan dealmaker. Could 2024 Senate race beckon?
Murphy said Jerry Demings, a fellow Democrat, had done a 'fine job' as mayor leading the county over the past eight years.
But the region's rapid growth — the county has an estimated 1.5 million residents — will greatly challenge his successor, she said.
'It's going to be a different next four years than it has been for the last eight,' Murphy said. 'I want people who are growing up and living and working in Orange County to have access to that American dream that the affordability crisis is putting out of their reach.'
She said transportation is a critical piece of what makes the community livable.
Murphy pushed back against the notion she was now the front-runner to be the county government's elected chief executive.
'I don't take any voter's vote for granted,' she said. 'I'm going to run this campaign the way that I've run every campaign which is with some humility and to start by getting people together and listening to the issues that the community faces, and then offer solutions…'
A mother of two children, ages 14 and 11, Murphy did not offer specific plans for the affordability or transportation challenges.
'Orange County is home for me, too, and I am looking forward to running a strong campaign where I talk to everybody in every corner of this county,' she said. 'I hope I get a chance to bring my decades of experience in business and a nonpartisan-results- oriented approach to the important work that has to be done to continue to make Orange County a welcoming place that's livable for everyone.'
The mayor's post pays $247,938.
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