8 Republicans clamor for 7th Congressional District voters' attention in primary election

How to stand out in a crowd? Eight Republicans in a campaign for Florida's 7th Congressional District are grappling with this dilemma in different ways.

Erika Benfield, the only woman in the race, has the catchiest slogan: "Erika for America."

Brady Duke is a retired Navy SEAL whose "journey of faith" led him to the ministry.

Ted Edwards checks many of the conservative boxes — cut inflation, eliminate illegal immigration, stop critical race theory — but deviates on gun control, arguing new laws should require responsible gun ownership.

Cory Mills is an Army combat veteran who started a company that made riot-control munitions for law enforcement, and proudly shared some of his work in a TV spot, highlighting protest scenes where tear gas was used on Black Lives Matter protesters.

Election 2022: 4 Democrats hope to replace Stephanie Murphy in Florida 7th Congressional

In Florida's 6th: Congressman Michael Waltz faces challenger Charles Davis in Republican primary election

'They're the ones who are guilty': In New Smyrna Beach, GOP backers and candidates hold on to Trump's election-fraud claims

Rusty Roberts is a policy veteran, having served as former Congressman John Mica's chief of staff and a Ron DeSantis-appointee on the Florida Transportation Commission.

Anthony Sabatini is a Florida House Republican who says he's fighting two wars: One against liberals and another against RINOS like Mitt Romney and Mitch McConnell.

Al Santos is a former Army lieutenant colonel whose assignments took him to Colombia to combat illegal drug and gun trafficking, Afghanistan to fight terrorism and Central Asia to serve as a foreign area officer in several U.S. embassies.

Scott Sturgill is a fourth-generation Seminole County native who built a successful business and says Washington "needs more adults in the room."

Three candidates have, as of the latest FEC filing on Aug. 3, topped the $1 million mark in fundraising, with Duke leading the way at nearly $2.9 million. But Sabatini and Mills have gotten more media attention and claim the highest-profile endorsements. Sabatini is hosting Georgia Rep. Marjorie Taylor Greene at a rally Saturday in New Smyrna Beach, while Mills landed an endorsement by the Volusia County Republican Party, which lists him — and only him — on its voter guide sent to all GOP voters in the county.

They are all seeking to flip the seat, held by Democrat Stephanie Murphy, who is retiring.

Here's a closer look at the candidates and what they've said during the campaign.

Cory Mills

Born in Winter Haven, Mills served in the U.S. Army in the 82nd Airborne Division and as a member of Joint Special Operations Command Combined Joint Task Force 20 in Iraq, where he served for seven years.

He also had stints in Afghanistan and Kosovo. In 2006, he was twice injured by explosive devices. He was later awarded a Bronze Star.

Mills, who recently moved to New Smyrna Beach, was appointed by then-President Donald Trump as a Department of Defense adviser and foreign policy expert. And he co-founded Pacem Solution International LLC and Pacem Defense LLC, which have provided intelligence collection and security.

Sen. Ted Cruz of Texas, U.S. Rep. Jim Jordan of Ohio and the Volusia County Republican Executive Committee are among those endorsing Mills.

Mills has been critical of President Joe Biden on the U.S. withdrawal from Afghanistan in 2021. "Biden and his regime must be held accountable for the treasonous betrayal of Americans left behind to die," Mills tweeted.

He called for the removal of Attorney General Merrick Garland following the execution of a search warrant on Trump's Mar-a-Lago property to collect "highly classified material."

And he went to the U.S.-Mexico border, where he filmed an explainer on how undocumented immigrants cross the Rio Grande and slip into the United States and argued that a measure put into place by the Trump administration near the onset of the pandemic denying individuals the right to request asylum should be made law.

"We need to ensure that Title 42 becomes a permanent piece of legislation so that we can immediately expel those who are violating our sovereignty and violating our laws," Mills said.

Anthony Sabatini

Sabatini, who has served four years in the Legislature, lives in Howey-in-the-Hills in Lake County and has said he plans to move to Seminole County.

A lawyer and officer in the Florida National Guard, Sabatini claims endorsements from Sen. Rand Paul of Kentucky, U.S. Reps. Matt Gaetz and Marjorie Taylor Greene, who will be campaigning for him in New Smyrna Beach on Saturday.

Like most of his competitors, Sabatini embraces the Big Lie that Donald Trump won the 2020 election and calls for an election security in the form of a “full forensic audit in every state.” Among his other priorities: cracking down on Big Tech censorship; ending illegal immigration; protecting the Second Amendment; barring transgender men from girls’ sports; and creating term limits for every politician.

In addition to Greene and Gaetz, Sabatini has been endorsed by Sen. Rand Paul, ret. Lt. Gen. Michael Flynn, Rep. Paul Gosar and Rep. Louie Gohmert.

He filed more than a dozen lawsuits against Florida municipalities that enacted mask mandates in 2020; one of them, DeLand, successfully defended its ordinance in court.

He has called for the renaming of U.S. Highway 27 as President Donald J. Trump Highway and defended the former president following the collection of classified materials at Mar-a-Lago, tweeting: “The FBI at this point is totally useless. We need to de-fund it.”

Brady Duke

Duke, a Kissimmee Gateway High School swimming champion in 2002-2003, joined the Navy and fulfilled his childhood dream of making the Navy SEALs as a sniper and breacher. He served in Afghanistan and earned two Navy commendation medals.

Married with five children, Duke lives in Oviedo. He went to school for Christian ministries and has worked as a SWAT and combat trainer for law enforcement agencies.

In a TV spot, Duke peers through the scope of a rifle and says Democrats' agenda is destroying America. "This SEAL is ready to take aim in Washington," he says in the ad.

He says "America First" leadership is needed to combat inflation.

Duke says his priorities include defeating tax hikes, securing the border and defending the United States, and passing term limits for politicians. He calls himself "100% pro-life" and supports the Supreme Court's overturn of the Roe decision guaranteeing access to abortion.

He said he leads through exhibiting virtue and moral courage.

Scott Sturgill

Sturgill, of Sanford, started Durable Safety Products and serves as its CEO.

The business, with 43 employees, provides safety gear and personal protective equipment to frontline workers, including first responders, construction workers and school crossing guards.

He has served on the boards of the AdventHealth Foundation, Seminole County Chamber of Commerce and Seminole State College.

He said he signed pledges to limit elected officials' terms and reform taxes. His aims in Congress are to cut bureaucratic red tape, promote economic growth, secure U.S. borders and "protect Florida schools from the federal government's radical, liberal agenda."

He opposes the Biden administration's decision to block construction of the Keystone XL pipeline and argues in favor of oil drilling rather than increasing solar and wind technologies, saying they are not proven. "I've never seen an administration who is working so hard to hurt the American people each and every day," he said.

In 2018, Sturgill lost a bid to earn the GOP nomination for the 7th Congressional District seat, finishing second to Mike Miller in a three-person race.

Erika Benfield

Benfield was born in Puerto Rico and moved stateside at age 6, living in Central Florida most of her life. The former DeBary vice mayor lost a bid for Florida House of Representatives in 2020.

She attended the rally held by Trump at the Ellipse in Washington D.C., on Jan. 6, 2021, prior to the attack on the U.S. Capitol. "I saw no violence," she said during a WESH-TV debate. "We sang 'Happy Birthday' to Eric (Trump)." When she saw footage of the later Capitol riot, she said she was "shocked."

Benfield, who owns a retail and interior design business, said the Biden administration and the policies of Democrat-run cities have "ruined America and livelihoods like mine," citing inflation and supply-chain issues.

"I fully back the America First agenda that will make American jobs a priority and unleash energy independence once again," she says on her website. "I will support policies that will help our workforce, support American manufacturing, stand up to China, and drain the D.C. swamp.

Benfield said her two youngest children attend virtual school because American public schools have "taken rights away from parents, exposing them to ideologies that are not within my Christian faith."

Among her endorsements is one from Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood, who said: "We don't need carpetbaggers. We need someone who is a business owner, a mom and a grandmom to represent us in Volusia and Seminole counties."

Rusty Roberts

Roberts, of Longwood, was chief of staff to Mica, who represented Seminole and Volusia counties from 1993 to 2016, after serving in the same role for Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen of Miami. Starting in 1981, he was state director for U.S. Sen. Paula Hawkins.

Mica, who was chair of the House Transportation and Infrastructure Committee, has endorsed Roberts. After Mica lost to Murphy in 2016, Roberts became vice president of Brightline Trains, the privately funded high-speed passenger train that is on pace to link Miami with Orlando in 2023.

His intention in Congress is to "tackle tough problems," including "getting our fiscal house in order and reducing spending."

Roberts said other priorities include finishing the southern border wall, getting tough on crime, education reform, supporting the Second Amendment and energy independence.

Ted Edwards

Edwards, a Winter Park resident, says he also has a home in New Smyrna Beach. He grew up on a cattle ranch and is a Florida native.

He is a Duke University-trained attorney whose clients have included Rosen Hotels and Resorts. He served as a "budget hawk" on the Orange County Commission until 2016.

Unlike the other Republican candidates, Edwards supports some gun-control measures.

"I think we can protect the Second Amendment and we can protect our children. They are not mutually exclusive," he said at a Tiger Bay Club debate in Daytona Beach in June. "I think we can pass reasonable gun laws, gun regulations, as Florida has done, that protects our kids."

Following the Parkland mass school shooting in 2018, Florida's Republican-led Legislature raised the age to purchase rifles and handguns to 21. Edwards supports universal background checks and red-flag laws.

His other priorities in Washington will be focused on lowering inflation; stopping funding "illegals" and finishing Trump's border wall; stopping socialism and the Green New Deal; eliminating critical race theory and "woke indoctrination;" and ending cancel culture.

He said Jan. 6 is "a black mark on our country," but it's time to "turn the page."

Al Santos

Born in Puerto Rico, Santos studied business in college before establishing a hardware store, one of a number of businesses he has run. He graduated from the University of Puerto Rico ROTC and served in the U.S. Army National Guard.

He was hired to work in the Puerto Rico State Senate as a staffer liaison to cities. He was elected president of the Republican Party in his hometown.

In the Army, he rose to the rank of lieutenant colonel and had stints as senior adviser to the Afghan Commander Special Operations Brigade South in Kandahar as well as director and team leader of commando course and Cobra Strike training program in Afghanistan. In 2007 and 2008, he was commander of the counter-drug and counter-narco terrorism programs in Colombia. He later helped establish Operation Enduring Freedom Caribbean & Central America program. He was a foreign area officer in several U.S. embassies, including one in Bishkek, Kyrgyzstan.

During the WESH debate, Santos said the Jan. 6 commission is a distraction. "We should be focusing on China. … Our No. 1 adversary is China," he said.

His other priorities include energy independence, teaching children to love America while fighting "woke elitists" pushing critical race theory, and mandating voter ID at all polling locations.

Never miss a story: Subscribe to The Daytona Beach News-Journal using the link at the top of the page.

This article originally appeared on The Daytona Beach News-Journal: 7th District U.S. House Republicans: Voters choose from crowd for 2022