Plantation Councilman Nick Sortal tried to silence a former supporter with a barrage of late night text messages and even a voicemail. Sortal contacted Plantation resident Susanna Bott on Monday night after she asked him to drop out of the Mayoral race in a Facebook post. Bott was upset after Sortal admitted to making sexual and racial comments to a female employee inside City Hall.

On June 13, 2022, REDBROWARD revealed a longtime city employee filed a complaint against Nick Sortal after he made inappropriate sexual and racial remarks to her while he was conducting official business. After a fight between his wife and Mayor Stoner, Sortal told the employee, “My dick is hard for this.” Sortal also expressed satisfaction that “Plantation will never have a black mayor.”

An official memorandum shows Nick Sortal admitted to making the comments. Later, Sortal told the Sun-Sentinel the accusation of racial remarks was a “lie.” But during the June 22, 2022 City Council meeting, Nick Sortal admitted to everyone that he made the racial remark. He claimed he was joking.

In a Monday June 27, 2022 Facebook post, Bott asked Nick Sortal to “do the right thing” and “show some class” by dropping his bid to unseat popular incumbent Mayor Lynn Stoner. While she initially planned to support Sortal over Stoner, Bott said, “poor judgement and vulgar comments” as well as “racist remarks” can not be tolerated.

Shortly after posting the comments, Sortal called Bott. Since it was after 11:00PM, Bott sent the call to voicemail. REDBROWARD obtained a copy of the voicemail.

Sortal told Bott he had, “Been thinking about you for a few days.” Sortal said, “What you have read is not true.” He said he wanted to show her what really happened.

“I would never, umm, do the racial thing,” Sortal said. “I would appreciate if you waited before saying anything to anyone else in the public.”

Sortal said, “This really, really bothers me.” He claimed that, “It’s not right what they’re saying at all.”

Bott said Sortal sent text messages and Facebook messages until midnight.

Why would Nick Sortal deny saying the “racial thing” when he admitted to it five days earlier? It’s on audio and video. It is part of the official City record.

While Bott is active in Plantation Democrat politics, she holds no official position. Why is Nick Sortal asking her to stop talking about him?

As REDBROWARD reported yesterday, TEAM SORTAL appears eager to silence opposing points of view.

Sortal called the whistleblower/employee a liar.

Sortal asked supporters to contact Sun-Sentinel editors to complain about reporter Lisa Huriash after she published his racial remarks. He wanted to paint her story as “inaccurate” and “incorrect” even though he admitted making the remarks.

Yesterday, REDBROWARD revealed Plantation Councilmember Denise Horland, a Sortal ally, requested the names of all Plantation residents who requested copies of the Sortal investigation.

Why are Nick Sortal and Denise Horland eager to silence Plantation residents and the media?

Plantation voters deserve answers, right?