JACKSONVILLE, Fla. — (The video above is from a previous report)
Scientist. Whistleblower. Fighter.
It's how Rebekah Jones, who made headlines in 2020 for being fired from her role in the Department of Health, is describing herself on her campaign website.
Jones announced last Friday she's filed all the necessary documents to run for Florida's District 1 U.S. House seat against Rep. Matt Gaetz, according to her GoFundMe page.
The Federal Elections Commission website also lists her as a Democratic candidate. She had initially teased the idea of running as an Independent.
"I became a whistleblower and reluctant public figure for refusing to mislead Florida's people with bad data in support of a political plan not grounded by the science," Jones says on her website.
She says her campaign platform will focus on several key issues including government transparency, the environment, voting rights and science.
She also says she wants to hold the media accountable "when they publish fake news and outright lies".
"Let's elect someone to Congress who cares more about the people than the politics for a change," says Jones on her website.
RELATED: Former Florida coronavirus data worker jailed, accused of illegally sending mass emergency text
For context, Jones helped create the state's COVID-19 dashboard but was ousted when Gov. Ron DeSantis accused her of putting data on the portal that the scientists did not believe, not listening to her superiors, and having criminal charges in the state.
Since then, the Florida Department of Law Enforcement claims Jones got into the Department of Health communications system and sent a text to users of the State Emergency Response Team after she had left her position. Jones has publicly denied such claims.
Agents stand by the accusation that Rebekah Jones' IP address was linked to the text message.