Is Radical Republican Chair Mark Flanagan Spewing Lies About Republican Candidates?

When the state party under Joe Gruters installed Mark Flanagan as Chairman of the local Manatee Republican Executive Committee, it was because party leadership wanted a radical right-winger to deceive voters. Locally, Joe Gruters's wife, Sydney, has displayed the worst of what Republicans should stand for through a campaign of falsehoods, including the use of fake AI images and videos.

Flanagan’s agenda was twofold: discredit The Bradenton Times' reporting and blindly back the misleading rhetoric of his favored candidates. About a year ago, Flanagan funded a targeted attack against The Bradenton Times through two mass text messages. We suspect these messages were crafted alongside appointed committeeman DePriest, a known political operative willing to smear any opponent. In this case, our publication became the target.

The drive to undermine The Bradenton Times followed our coverage of the 2024 elections, when a majority of our endorsed candidates won by landslides against the state party establishment's wishes—earning an average of 60 percent of the vote with strong backing from local Republicans. In response, state party leaders ousted dedicated local members and replaced them with figures like Flanagan and DePriest. The Bradenton Times educates and provides perspective, but Manatee County voters know how to sort through the noise.

Flanagan’s texts at the time specifically attacked Mitch Maley and me, labeling us "leftists" and "socialists." He even broadcast a "Republican Safety Alert" claiming our publication posed a threat to Republicans. In reality, Flanagan’s own initial text message provoked a hostile reply regarding Charlie Kirk. Knowing full well before he sent his follow-up that The Bradenton Times had nothing to do with that response—which he then claimed came from a "socialist" after previously branding us as such—he remains accountable for circulating a known falsehood. That is why we filed a formal complaint against him and the MREC. Flanagan even had aliases claim credit for the messages, even though the MREC funded the texts, and he was the appointed chair.

Recently, Flanagan has claimed victory because a local judge declined to allow our action to proceed, ruling that his and the REC’s speech was protected. However, case law and the U.S. Constitution do not protect knowingly false statements, nor is there blanket immunity for defamation. Flanagan, the REC, and his proxies also claimed we spread lies and hate, even calling for Maley’s termination. As our readers know, we stand by our facts and reject hate. Now, Flanagan turns a blind eye to Republican candidates who spread lies, urging voters to cast their ballots based on deception. Readers can judge for themselves whether that reflects hypocrisy or un-Christian conduct.

There is no hiding the fact that The Bradenton Times endorsed Kelly Kirschner over Sydney Gruters. We clearly stated our reasons: her campaign of falsehoods, her ties to special interests and developers, and the nearly $6 million spent to buy her seat all prove she is not the right choice for our community.

On Friday night, I attended an event where Kelly laid out a concrete plan—not just talking points—to ensure the cruise port threat to Rattlesnake Key will never happen again. The event was held at Star Fish Company in Cortez, overlooking old Florida in one of our last working fishing villages. Karen Bell, the owner and a fellow Republican, has endorsed Kelly alongside me, as have roughly half the Republicans who were in attendance.

In my 22 years in local public life, I have heard many politicians, and I consider Kelly Kirschner to be one of the best representatives our community could ask for. He speaks candidly and stays on point. When his opponent, Sydney Gruters, resorts to AI-generated attack ads depicting him being arrested or walking with undocumented immigrants, it only highlights her lack of substantive credentials for Congress.

My recommendation to voters of all political parties—and those with no party affiliation—is to vote for Kelly Kirschner. Congressional terms are two years; if he does not deliver, voters can replace him. But Kelly understands this district, has shown he will seek the middle ground, and will represent everyone. I have great confidence he will not disappoint us.

As for Flanagan and our local Republican Executive Committee, having Kelly win over an establishment-backed campaign will hopefully send a clear message: stop clogging our phones, mailboxes, and airwaves with toxic labels like "socialist" and "leftist," and return the Republican Party to the foundational values of integrity and service upon which our country was built.

At The Bradenton Times, we will continue our work to report the facts and hold the powerful accountable. Please share our work; an informed public is the best defense of our democracy.

Joe McClash is the publisher of The Bradenton Times, a Marine Corps veteran, and a former Manatee County commissioner who served for 22 years as a Republican.