Republican gubernatorial candidate Paula Dockery’s words:
“This is a year when voters who are usually cynical and tune out of politics are now angry and tuning back in. They want somebody who fights for them. I have shown over the past two and a half years that even when it was not politically popular for me to do so I stood up and fought for them.
“They want people who are not going to waste their tax dollars. I have shown that that’s a motivating factor in why I’m in the race. I think that Republican voters know who Bill McCollum is, but they’re not excited by him. They’ve voted for him numerous times over a very long political career, but they don’t want a career politician. They want a new, fresh face with a vision and a fighter and somebody with energy and excitement, and that’s what we have. We’re something different, but we’re something that’s proven. And I have a 13-year going on 14- year track record that I’m very proud of.”
Audio: Paula Dockery at Broward Republican Party
Candidate bio below“I’m running for governor because as one of 40 senators I was able to fight off a really bad deal for two years in a row. But in the end special interests will always win because they have the power, they have the money, they have the influence. But as governor I have that veto pen. And I think the best thing a governor can do is stop the bad stuff.
“You have to have a vision for what you want to do that’s good, but the best thing you can do is stop the bad stuff. When I talk to a group of Republicans I don’t hear, ‘hey, tell me about all the new social programs you’re going to pass. We want government to do more.’ That’s not what I’m hearing. What I’m hearing is let’s get government out of this, let’s get government out of that.
“So what I want to do is start cutting back on what we’re doing. Am I fiscally conservative? You betcha. Am I a social conservative? I’m pro-life. I’m pro-Second Amendment. I’m pro-Tenth Amendment. I think I am what in a candidate the Republican Party wants. So I’m offering myself up. I know it’s an uphill battle. I’m not the party’s voice.”
Candidate background:
Born: June 6, 1961, Queens, N.Y.
Family: Husband, C.C. “Doc” Dockery
Residence: Lakeland. Family moved to Coral Springs in 1968 when the city, now Broward’s fourth largest, had 200 families.
Party affiliation: Republican.
Current/previous elected offices: Florida Senate, 2002 to present; Florida House of Representatives, 1996-2002.
Occupation: Citrus and cattle.
Education: Coral Springs High School (class of 1979, the first class that spent all four years at the school); bachelor’s and master’s degrees, University of Florida.
