Jacob Ogles
Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam joins a parade of Democratic officials campaigning in Florida this year.
The governor will be in Jupiter today rallying votes for Lauren Baer, the Democratic challenger in Florida’s 18th Congressional District, and Andrew Gillum, Florida’s Democratic nominee for Governor.
Northam beat Republican Ed Gillespie in a landslide in Virginia last November.
Strong performance by Democrats in the Old Dominion was read nationally as a sign of a pro-Democratic mood just a year after the surprise election of Republican President Donald Trump.
The same election Northam won the governor’s mansion, Democrats made heavy gains in the state Legislature. The Republicans still hold the Virginia Senate by a narrow 21-19 majority. And the GOP’s 51-49 control of the Virginia House was determined by a coin toss on one seat where voters delivered a tie.
Gillum, Tallahassee’s mayor, would like to see Democratic gains in the Legislature should he take over the governor’s mansion in the Sunshine State. The party has a longshot chance at retaking the Senate but little shot at the state House. Still, parity would help abate a potentially hostile Legislature for the first Democratic governor in 24 years.
That’s only if Gillum wins, though. He faces a tough challenge from Republican Ron DeSantis, who today will be in Pensacola campaigning with President Trump.
Northam said he’s traveling throughout the East Coast of the U.S. to encourage voters to elect more Democratic governors and to flip control of Congress to Democrats.
Of course, Virginia has a number of its own races on the ballot Tuesday, but Democrats in the once-purple state feel fairly confident heading into the election Tuesday, enough so that the top state official with a ‘D’ by his name will spend the final weekend before the election in Florida.
He will be at 1200 Town Center Drive in Jupiter today at noon. Baer’s campaign publicized the event. Baer seeks to unseat Republican incumbent Rep. Brian Mast.
