Drew Wilson
Republican Judson Sapp announced Monday that he’d landed three endorsements for his campaign to boot Gainesville Republican U.S. Rep. Ted Yoho from Florida’s 3rd Congressional District.
His new backers are former state Sen. Jim Horne, former Clay County Sheriff Rick Beseler and Green Cove Springs City Councilman Van Royal.
“Judson has the right vision and leadership to represent the constituents of the 3rd Congressional district. He is a successful businessman and will be a leader in Congress from day one,” said Horne, who served as Education Commissioner during Jeb Bush’s tenure as Governor. “Judson Sapp understands that every child must receive a quality education to fully realize the American dream, and as our Congressman he’ll work to make sure our students have those opportunities.”
Beseler said he was “disappointed in Congress, and we need a reset,” adding that Sapp is “a leader we can trust to make government smaller, protect our second amendment rights, and keep our community safe.” Royal pointed to Sapp’s background as a businessman, saying Congress “needs more businessmen who understand how to meet a payroll and earn a dollar.”
Sapp thanked each of his endorsers for the support and said the North Central Florida district deserves “a Congressman who will take a business-like approach to Washington.”
Sapp is one of five candidates to qualify for the ballot in CD 3, the others being Yoho and Democrats Dushyant Gosai, Yvonne Hayes Hinson and Tom Wells.
Through the end of March, Yoho led the money race with $466,000 raised and $355,000 in the bank. Sapp had $24,000 on hand, followed by Hinson at $13,200, Wells at $1,800 and Gosai at $383.
CD 3 covers the whole of Alachua, Bradford, Clay, Putnam and Union counties as well as the northern half of Marion County. The major population centers of the district are Gainesville, Palatka and part of Ocala.
The seat is a Republican stronghold and whether Yoho is re-elected will likely be decided in the Aug. 28 primary election. Yoho was elected to the old CD 3, which extended westward from it’s base in Alachua County, back in 2012. In 2016, Yoho was re-elected over Democrat Ken McGurn to the newly drawn CD 3 with 57 percent of the vote.
In the same cycle, CD 3 voted plus-16 for Donald Trump.
