Deep Something

Birds of a Feather-A New Arrival

October 21, 2026October 21, 2026 B. John 67 Views 0 Comments Hillsborough School Board, Ken Gay, James Fishback, District 6, Far-Right Politics, 2026 Elections

This entry is in the series 2026 Elections

The flock around Ken Gay just got another member. Former Republican gubernatorial candidate James Fishback has endorsed Gay for Hillsborough County School Board District 6, calling him a “conservative” candidate in a post on his X account.

Fishback spent much of his 2026 campaign building attention through inflammatory rhetoric. Axios reported him saying, “White genocide is real.” At the same time, other coverage documented his use of “Great Replacement” themes and his support from far-right figures and online communities. He ultimately finished third in the Republican gubernatorial primary with 10.5% of the vote.

An endorsement doesn’t mean Gay shares every belief Fishback holds. But when you add Fishback to the list of conservative figures already lining up behind Gay, the old phrase keeps coming back: birds of a feather. At some point, you have to look at the flock.

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Birds of a Feather

October 7, 2026 B. John 219 Views 0 Comments School Vouchers, Hillsborough County Schools, Ken Gay, LGBTQ Students, Danny Alvarez, Michael Owen

This entry is in the series Education

This entry is in the series 2026 Elections

Ken Gay’s latest supporter graphic features Republican state representatives Danny Alvarez, Traci Koster and Michael Owen. Once you look at their education records, the endorsements require very little explanation. Alvarez and Koster backed Florida’s expansion of private-school scholarships and HB 1069, with its restrictions on sexual-orientation and gender-identity instruction and pronoun use. Owen has supported similar school-choice policies and legislation expanding religious expression in public schools.

The consequences of those LGBTQ-related policies are harder to shrug off as another Tallahassee culture-war hobby. Trevor Project research found that LGBTQ+ students attending schools with even one anti-LGBTQ+ policy reported higher rates of anxiety, depression and suicide attempts. Its 2023 research also found lower suicide-attempt rates among students with affirming school supports, including teachers who respected transgender and nonbinary students’ pronouns. Apparently, treating children with dignity has measurable benefits. Who knew?

So “birds of a feather” seems an apt description of the policy overlap. The same group supporting Gay has repeatedly backed moving education dollars toward private alternatives while supporting restrictions that fall particularly hard on LGBTQ+ students. The question behind the endorsements is worth examining: what does that agenda mean inside a public-school system charged with educating every child who walks through its doors?