Volusia County Sheriff Mike Chitwood withdrew his endorsement of Republican Congressman Randy Fine on Thursday over Fine’s anti-Muslim posts on social media.
Chitwood wrote on Facebook about his work with Fine and protecting the Jewish community from “Neo NAZIs.” Chitwood also reflected on their similar abrasive and blunt manners of speech.
“I respect his fight for his faith and his beliefs. But I have to part ways when that fight turns into an attack on our Muslim neighbors,” Chitwood said.
Fine represents Florida’s 6th Congressional district, which stretches from St. Augustine to Daytona Beach, moving inland to Ocala.
On Sunday, Fine, a Republican, posted a message on the social media platform X stating, “If they force us to choose, the choice between dogs and Muslims is not a difficult one.” He later added a follow-up post that he would choose his “dog.”
Fine’s post was directed at a Palestinian American activist, Nerdeen Kiswani, and a comment she made last week toward a discussion about dogs in New York City.
“Finally, NYC is coming to Islam. Dogs definitely have a place in society, just not as indoor pets. Like we’ve said all along, they are unclean,” she wrote.
Later that day, Kiswani said she meant the post as a joke.
Fine, however, doubled down on his comments in a series of posts with different breeds of dogs featured on the “don’t tread on me” flag.
Fine has also been making the rounds on several conservative talk shows throughout the week, calling Kiswani an advisor to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani. Kiswani has said she is not. In multiple interviews, Fine has stated that Kiswani’s post is a sign that New York Democrats want to remove dogs from the city.
“Welcome to 2026, where Democrats believe that those who love their dogs are racist,” Fine said.
Since his post, several prominent Democrats have called for Fine’s resignation, including Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez.
“This is genuinely one of the most disgusting statements I have ever seen issued by an American official,” Ocasio-Cortez said, referring to Fine’s X posts.
Fine has "crossed lines in the past," Chitwood said, and that he “could not endorse wishing for kids in Gaza to starve or for Muslim American citizens to be expelled from the U.S."
According to Chitwood, Fine reached out to the Sheriff after posting on Facebook. Chitwood updated his post with words from Fine, who said that he would always support VCSO.
