The closely divided presidential election of 2000 - in which George W. Bush defeated Al Gore by the slimmest of margins in Florida - forever implanted the divide between red states and blue states in our political consciousness.
Way too many voters are apathetic and don't do their research and are on the sidelines.
There can be no more burying our heads in the sand by being afraid to even mention the words 'climate change' aloud.
A lot of folks look at the political calculation and then determine the policy. I think that's backward.
We need to end unlimited, unaccountable money for all political parties by passing comprehensive campaign finance reform.
As a 9-year-old child, I vividly remember the day Hurricane Andrew touched down in 1992. My family was living in the Upper Florida Keys at the time, and we soon realized its utter devastation to South Florida, with entire blocks leveled by Andrew's vicious winds.
The political process does not end on Election Day. Young people need to stay involved in the process by continuing to pay attention to the conversation and holding their leaders accountable for the decisions they make.
As the country's third-largest state by population, Florida is the crown jewel in the Electoral College among swing states.
The Citizens United decision dramatically intensified the political gridlock in our country.
I worked as a day laborer throughout college, worked for Deloitte and Touche, got my CPA.
There's certain issues, as I say in my speeches, that I'm not going to compromise on; I'm not going to compromise on a woman's right to choose and on marriage equality.
Whether it's threats to Medicare, cuts in education spending, or Internet privacy, the ramifications got young people out to vote and should be enough to keep them involved in our political system.
What will be the final straw that finally forces Congress to at least open up formal debate - let alone introduce a bill, pass it, and have it signed into law - that curbs the scourge of gun deaths across the country?
The impact of our warming planet will likely lead to even stricter zoning and building codes to account for the rising sea levels visible in places like South Beach - even on days without a cloud in sky.
The Tea Party movement went off on a more extreme agenda that I did not support at all, and was very frustrated by it, to the point that not only did I change parties, I decided to do something about it and run for Congress.
We must maintain strong building codes, strengthen flood insurance programs, and forcefully acknowledge the reality that rising sea temperatures caused by made-man climate change are negatively impacting our way of life. This should be a bipartisan task that finds support with bipartisan solutions.
