Alan Grayson Gives Would-Be Successor in Congress Big Boost — by Marrying Her
Graphic by Angelie Zaslavsky
Florida Rep. Alan Grayson, a liberal gadfly who once branded Republicans as “Jesus freaks,” has now married the woman who wants to take his seat Congress when he runs for the U.S. Senate seat now held by Marco Rubio.
Grayson’s newly minted wife, Dena Minning, has been plotting a run for the Orlando-area seat for at least a year.
Since the Memorial Day wedding, Minning has wasted no time updating her social media statuses to reflect her new title as Grayson’s wife and a candidate for the House. Her Twitter handle changed to @DenaForCongress and her Facebook also lists her occupation as “Democratic Candidate at US House of Representatives” alongside being a physician and biochemist.
Minning’s two strongest opponents in the August 30 primary are reported to be State Senate Darren Soto and former aide Susannah Randolph.
Minning is running with the support of Grayson, a plan previously unbeknownst to his former aide.
In an interview last year with Politico, Randolph said, “I’m speechless,” when prompted of the news.
Drama seems to follow Grayson, who was the first Jewish lawmaker to back Bernie Sanders. Earlier this year an ethics investigation into his dual role as a hedge fund manager and Senate candidate prompted his campaign to snub the actions as a “political witch hunt.”
The situation with Minning has proven no different. This past February, Grayson caused another scene when he called up Randolph and, according to Politico, accused her of supporting his Democratic rival for the Senate seat, Rep. Patrick Murphy.
Hopefully this marriage goes better than Grayson’s previous one, when he was accused of shoving his former wife during a domestic dispute in 2014. She later won a temporary protective order against him.
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