Guest Author
The neon green flyer was stuck into my driver’s side door of my pickup truck. Such material usually meets one fate – the trash can, unless it’s the last Sunday before the start of early voting.
The Environmental Caucus of Florida’s list of endorsed candidates: Nan Rich for governor.
There was no website listed. There was no way to check to see if this list of Democratic candidates for city and legislative primary races was valid. Any search for the Environmental Caucus of Florida sends you to the Democratic Environmental Caucus of Florida. (A member of the Central Florida Democratic Environmental Caucus said the St. Petersburg-based group didn’t endorse a gubernatorial candidate.)
But valid or fraudulent, the list reinforced the notion that environmental issues will move some voters this election season. But how many?
Rich, the decided underdog in her primary contest with former Gov. Charlie Crist, reminds us on her website how far we have backslidden environmentally. And the former legislator isn’t shy about assigning blame.
Florida was “once a bellwether state with progressive growth management laws,” she charges. “That progress has been reversed under governors Crist and Gov. Rick Scott, who have slashed revenues to Florida’s Water Management Districts, eliminated the agency that reviewed huge development plans and stripped away local environmental controls.”
She’s talking about the Department of Community Affairs, the agency Scott axed during his first year in office. It’s hard to imagine how much the regulatory landscape has changed in the past decade.
Rich also mentions the “f” word. Fracking has created rural millionaires across the country, but that’s a price Floridians can’t afford. She opposes fracking and promises to push legislation to prevent the procedure across the state. “Fracking produces enormous volumes of toxic waste water that pose hazards for drinking water, air quality and public safety,” said Rich, who spent a dozen years in the Florida Legislature – four in the House and eight in the Senate, which she left in 2012. Whoever wins on Tuesday, fracking will be an issue in November.
Rich’s support from an environmental group, however obscure, could be a sign that some progressives are unwilling to buy Crist’s latest conversion, even if it lessens their chances of retaking the Governor’s Mansion in November.
Rich knows that and she has been reaching out to key progressive groups to cement her support. One of her loudest arguments is “Vote for me, I’m the real Democrat. I’ve been campaigning for the Democratic nomination longer than the other guy has even been a member of the party.”
For a party desperate for a gubernatorial winner after a trio of lackluster losers (Bill McBride, Jim Davis, Alex Sink), that may not be enough. Democrats may be ready to forgive Crist’s sins and ignore his shortcomings. Meanwhile, Rich on the primary ballot isn’t all bad. It should provide an early test of just how motivated is the Democratic base.
After all, as the party headquarters voicemail message says, “When Democrats vote, Democrats win.”
Andrew J. Skerritt is author of Ashamed to Die: Silence, Denial and the AIDS Epidemic in the South. He lives in Tallahassee. Follow him on Twitter @andrewjskerritt. Column courtesy of Context Florida.
