Orange County mayoral candidates pitch plans to bring high-paying jobs

Voters in Orange County will be choosing a new mayor for the first time in eight years on Election Day on Nov. 3.Tiffany Moore Russell and Chris Messina are running to replace Jerry Demings.News 6 anchor Lisa Bell asked both candidates how they would bring top-paying jobs to the county.[ELECTION 2026: Make sure you’re eligible to vote|How to vote by mail|Election Myths]CHRIS MESSINA: I see Orange County as the space tech capital of the country. I think that we can redevelop most of our blighted strip malls, and make them great places to live, work and play. I believe that we could use technology to address our transportation problems. TIFFANY MOORE RUSSELL: So first I think we need to acknowledge that we have great industries today here. We have our tourism; it is a great industry. We have a manufacturing industry. Our modeling and simulation out in East Orange County is doing well. And Medical City, right? It’s great what’s happening in Lake Nona and so for me, it’s to make sure we ca