By Sara Matthis & Sarah Thomas
At the age of 32, Holly Raschein decided to run for state office.
“I was nervous,” Holly Raschein said, looking back at the start of her career as an elected official. “I had to quit my job because I couldn’t campaign and work for the state. I had a newborn baby. My family did not live in town. I had to rely on my husband and my friends. A lot.”
And yet with nine years experience working as a legislative aide, Raschein ran for office and prevailed with a whopping 66% of the vote. She did it primarily because she was a stakeholder as a resident of Key Largo, and she was familiar with the local issues such as the environment, windstorm insurance, workforce housing.
“Listen, the boys club still exists in politics and it is very strong. You have to have chutzpah to get in front and get the work done,” she said. “But that should not be a deterrent for women.” Raschein said she’s surrounded by strong women, including elected officials, and they bring something important to the table. “It’s our nature to want to solve problems because that’s what we do in our daily lives.”
Tuesday, April 2
6:30 a.m. Run on treadmill for 30 minutes, after spending 15 minutes checking and responding to emails.
7:45 a.m. Arrive at the Capitol in Tallahassee and quickly review materials before day’s meetings start.
9:00 a.m. Meetings with different stakeholders (lobbyists, organizations,
to noon elected representatives etc.) every five to 10 minutes.
(We have this beautiful schedule at the start of the day with appointments ranging from 5 to 15 minutes. I ALWAYS end up running over. My poor aide, Julio. On this particular day, I met with representatives of small cities in South Florida seeking funding for water quality, because I hold the purse strings with my role as the Chair of the Agriculture & Natural Resources Subcommittee. I also met with the Everglades Foundation. They wanted to talk about funding for restoration. I told them, ‘Help me find the money. We’re going to have to take money from something else, there’s only a finite amount.’ I tasked them with making some recommendations.)
12:50 p.m. Arrive to Chair the Agriculture & Natural Resources Subcommittee.
3:30 p.m. Appropriations Committee.
5:30 p.m. Facetime with my husband Ryan and son Drake.
6:45 p.m. Depart for Shiloh Farm Members Reception.
(This was a party for the Republican caucus. It’s important for the elected officials to have some downtime — a meal and wine — away from the rat race of the Capitol. It’s a time to network in a casual environment, ask questions and talk, especially for the newly elected.)
8:30 p.m. Follow up calls, confirm next day’s agenda.
9:00 p.m. Dinner with friends/colleagues.
10:30 p.m. Respond to emails, assign constituent cases, and communicate with Tallahassee and district staff.
11:45 p.m. Wash my face, brush my teeth and prepare for bed.
(I’m a night owl, but I try not to respond to emails until morning.)
