Two more Harris staffers depart

Katherine Harris lost two more top staffers this week, one from her campaign office and another from her congressional office.

"It's time for me to move on," said Leah Pitts, the deputy finance director of operations for Harris' U.S. Senate campaign.

Pitts is the fourth member of Harris' finance team to leave the staff in the past three months.

The departures come as Harris tries to rejuvenate her Senate campaign, which has suffered from slow fund-raising, bad poll numbers and a messy scandal over illegal campaign contributions.

Since December, Harris has lost two finance directors and a campaign treasurer. Months earlier, her campaign manager quit, and two pollsters have also left.

A campaign spokeswoman for Harris said Pitts did a good job for the campaign but was not considered a senior-level staff member.

It's not just the Longboat Key Republican's campaign staff that is turning over.

Her congressional office lost its second employee in as many weeks. Deputy chief of staff Peggy Evans quit on Thursday, a week after press secretary Kara Borie left after seven months on the job.

Turnover has been a consistent problem for Harris since she was elected to Congress in 2002.

Harris has had four chiefs of staff, four district directors and now five press secretaries. On average, members of Congress hold onto their high-level staff for four to five years.

But Harris has had to replace key people on her staff every nine months.

Harris did not comment for this story, but in previous interviews blamed the turnover on other people hiring away her workers because they are good at their jobs.

The continued turnover on both of Harris' staffs comes despite her announcement two weeks ago to commit at least $10 million of her own money to jumpstart her sluggish fund-raising.

Harris had about $1 million in her campaign account as of Jan. 1, far short of the $25 million she boasted last summer that she would be able to raise for her race against Sen. Bill Nelson, a Democrat.

Campaign consultant Ed Rollins remains with the staff.

A former political director for President Ronald Reagan, Rollins was recently quoted in the media as saying he and other advisers told Harris to give up the Senate race. His comments fueled rumors that he would leave the campaign soon.

"I'm working on the campaign right now," Rollins said when reached by telephone Thursday.

When reached by telephone on Thursday, Rollins said he hadn't left the campaign.