YOUR NEIGHBOR: Vickie Brill

Neighborhood: Longboat Arms
Neighbor since: 2001

Vickie Brill got her start in politics when she was 5 or 6, walking door to door with her dad, Jack Brill, to help out with Republican campaigns.

“Back then, it was just Dad-and-me time, but I liked being out there and talking to people, not that I really understood the issues back then,” Brill said. “It’s harder to shut the door for a little child.”

It was in college at George Mason University, in Fairfax, Va., that Brill truly began to grasp the issues while earning her business management degree. She interned for former U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez and for Hammond and Associates as a PAC fundraiser.

Nearly two decades after Brill got her start in politics going door-to-door, she’s a rising figure in local Republican politics.

The Florida political website, saintpetersblog.com, named her one of its “30 under 30 Rising Stars in Florida Politics.” She works for state Sen. Bill Galvano, R-Bradenton, and serves as president of Sarasota Young Republicans, which was dormant until February.

“We all wanted to get involved and take a stand and hone in on the fact that we do have young people in Sarasota,” she said.
The club, which defines “young” as 18 to 40, hasn’t yet taken a stance on any issues.

But, personally, Brill is concerned about the country’s current fiscal path. At the local level, she thinks that many people don’t realize their potential impact.

So, does she ever plan to run for office herself?

When Jon Thaxton, a Republican, challenged incumbent and
fellow Republican Kathy Dent last year for the title of Sarasota County Supervisor of Elections, Brill threw her name in the race as a write-in candidate, closing the primary in what would have become a universal primary even though she didn’t intend to run.

It’s a decision Brill defends, saying the purpose of a primary is for a party to pick its candidates.

As for running for office with the intention of being elected, Brill said, “I’d never say never to anything,” she says.