Gov. Rick Scott said Florida should be allowed it full complement of delegates when the Republican National Convention kicks off next Monday.

“We’re the biggest swing state in the country,” Scott told reporters Tuesday outside the LeRoy Collins Library in Tallahassee.  

“We were the first big primary win for Mitt Romney. This election is going to be very important to our country. So absolutely, all of our delegates should be seated.”

The Republican Party of Florida has continued to plead with national party leaders to change their mind on the delegate count, which was to change the host state’s delegation from 99 to 50 as a penalty for the Republican lead state Legislature moving the presidential primary forward on the calendar.

On Tuesday, it was announced that the number of guest passes for the state party's use at the convention -- often used as incentives to land big donors and encourage party participation -- is being cut by 160.

But at least the 49 alternates will be allowed to join the delegates on the floor, tagged as nonvoting “honored guests.”

In addition to the cut in delegates, the Republican National Committee panel had already voted unanimously to shaft the state delegates by setting them up in the Innisbrook Resort in Palm Harbor, a hotel some 40 minutes away from the convention center, placing their seating section toward the back of the room, and limiting the number of guest floor passes they could hand out.

The state faced a similar penalty in 2008, also for defying the national party and holding an early primary. At the 2008 convention, those who were cut from the delegate list were similarly granted floor access as nonvoting honoree guests on the floor.

Since April, the state party leadership has been reducing its delegation list to conform to the halved count. The state party has yet to release the list because of the ongoing struggle.

Scott will be speaking the opening night of the convention, shortly after 7:45 p.m.

With a focus that is expected to highlight Florida’s economic successes and a need to have a federal partner, he said he’s created an initial draft of his speech and getting “lots of advice.”



Reach Jim Turner at jturner@sunshinestatenews.com or at (772) 215-9889.