With the possibility that Rep. Chris Dorworth may lose a bid for re-election to his central Florida House seat the line of succession to the speakership of the House is now in question.
Dorworth, R-Lake Mary, was 37 votes behind Democrat Mike Clelland in House District 29.
If Clelland ends up winning the seat it throws a wrench into the future of Republican House leadership – Dorworth has been elected by his GOP House colleagues to follow incoming House Speaker Will Weatherford in 2014.
Speculation over how Dorworth would be replaced – and if House Republicans will choose a successor and when – was rampant this week, even as provisional votes in the Seminole County House race were being counted.
“We’ll cross that bridge if we get there,” Weatherford said in an interview with the News Service on Thursday. “If he doesn’t (win the election) the body will deal with it.”
Weatherford said there’s no plan to simply appoint a replacement for Dorworth rather than leave it up to members of the caucus. “I can assure you there will be no appointment,” Weatherford said.
If Dorworth ends up losing his seat, perhaps this would be a good thing. A recent article by Scott Maxwell of the Orlando Sentinel, described Dorworth as a “guy with more baggage than an ocean liner.” He has thumbed his nose at everyone – from his own mortgage company to taxpayers and is known not to play by the rules, particularly as this relates to financial accountability, according to Maxwell.
