A.G. Gancarski
Margate Democrat Jeremy Ring, a former state Senator and current Democratic nominee for Chief Financial Officer, will address Jacksonville Democrats tonight.
Ring will speak to the Duval Democrats at their normal monthly meeting (held at the IBEW Union Hall) at 6 p.m. Monday evening.
Ring is running against incumbent Panama City Republican Jimmy Patronis, a gubernatorial appointee running for his first term.
Patronis, who did not face a primary challenge, is well-capitalized, with over $5 million banked. Ring will not match that fundraising.
When we talked to Ring in late August, he contended that fundraising would not determine how the campaign would go.
Ring noted that with candidates for Senate and Governor running, and Constitutional amendments on the ballot, spending is “already up over $200 million.”
“So, $4 million or whatever buys you maybe a week and a half of TV,” Ring said. “But we’re all going to get lost in the clutter. And the clutter’s no longer just television — it’s digital, it’s scattered, it’s everything.”
“I’m not convinced that anyone [running downballot] is going to be able to break through the amount of money that’s going to be spent,” Ring predicted. “The cluttered environment is going to make it very difficult for anyone that doesn’t have $50 million, $100 million to spend.”
Polls of the race earlier this summer reflected an undefined race. Public Policy Polling had Ring up by five points; the Patronis-friendly Florida Chamber had Patronis up by nine.
