VoteWater, a South Florida clean-water advocacy group, has endorsed U.S. Rep. Brian Mast for Congress.

Mast, a Republican seeking his fifth term in Congress, has been endorsed repeatedly by VoteWater and its predecessor, Bullsugar.org, since he first ran in 2016.

“He’s the only member of South Florida’s Congressional delegation who doesn’t take campaign cash from Florida’s sugar industry,” said Gil Smart, VoteWater Executive Director. “He’s stood up to Big Sugar and backed reforms in the U.S. Farm Bill that would curtail sugar price supports.

“Congressman Mast has consistently used his position as a ‘bully pulpit’ to demand better water management,” said Smart. “He’s introduced legislation to reduce and ultimately end Lake Okeechobee discharges. He’s worked closely with our organization over the years and we appreciate his doggedness and his dedication to cleaner water on the Treasure Coast.”

Said Mast: “I often joke that the sugar industry probably wouldn’t dump a bucket of water on me if I was on fire because I’m always taking them to task and fighting for our waterways, and I definitely wouldn’t want a bucket of their toxic water dumped on me anyway.

“But there’s nothing funny about the threats our community faces thanks to mismanagement of Florida’s waterways,” said Mast. “Together, we’ve made progress to authorize the EAA reservoir, reduce discharges from Lake O, combat harmful algal blooms and fund Everglades restoration — but the fight is far from over. I’m proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with our community in this fight every day, and I’ll keep swinging the bat with everything I’ve got until all of the water is sent where it’s needed and not another drop is headed into our estuary.”

Headquartered in Stuart, VoteWater is a 501(c)(4) organization which works to empower Floridians to demand clean water and political accountability. The organization’s recently published “Dirty Money Project” tracks political giving by Big Sugar and other polluting special interests to south Florida politicians.