Frank Torres
Wednesday night, the Seminole County Republican Executive Committee held a watch party for the second GOP presidential debate in Casselberry.
A straw poll followed the three-hour affair, which laid out clear favorites among viewers in one of Florida’s most consistently Republican counties.
Participants liked former Hewlett-Packard CEO Carly Fiorina, who made her first appearance among top-tiered candidates. She took 52 percent of the vote.
GOP front-runner Donald Trump, one of Fiorina’s biggest and most controversial critics, captured 23 percent. Florida Sen. Marco Rubio came in third with 9 percent.
Former Florida Gov. Jeb Bush failed to collect a single vote. A watch party for Jeb supporters took place in downtown Orlando, a possible reason for the absence of support in Casselberry.
Despite the rain, there were more than 100 participants throughout the evening.
“It’s wonderful to see this kind of energy, especially early on in the process,” said Seminole GOP Chairman Al Schwarz, who expressed pleasure with the turnout and excitement heading into 2016.
“It’s getting bigger and bigger for us and that bods well for us moving into next year.”
