Peter Schorsch
Former New York City Mayor Mike Bloomberg‘s campaign continues to earn media to complement its paid spots, via a fusillade of bold-name endorsements.
The latest on Monday: Alex Sink of Thonotosassa, the state’s Chief Financial Officer from 2007-11.
Sink ran for Governor in 2010, garnering the Democratic nomination but losing to Republican Rick Scott.
Bloomberg’s campaign framed the endorsement as Sink believing Bloomberg had the “energy and resources” to defeat Republican incumbent Donald Trump.
“I believe Mike Bloomberg is the best candidate to win back America and restore honor to the Presidency,” Sink said. “With his experience and proven record in government and business, he will work to build an economy that works for all Americans. More than 40% of Florida families still live paycheck to paycheck. We need a President focused on higher wages, affordable housing, access to healthcare, and a clean environment.”
“Mike has been a champion for addressing the impacts of climate change, which is a critical issue for Floridians. And, on the weekend of the anniversary of the Parkland School tragedy, his record on gun safety is a reminder that we need new leadership in our country,” Sink added.
For months, Sink has wrestled over which candidate to get behind, reports Steve Contorno of the Tampa Bay Times. She previously attended a Tampa climate change roundtable hosted by Minnesota Sen. Amy Klobuchar. But she grew receptive to Bloomberg’s bid amid concerns that much of the field had tacked too far left to win here. She met with Bloomberg’s team not longer after he visited Tampa.
Sink’s endorsement — from a high-profile female politician with a history of supporting other women’s campaigns — comes at a critical juncture for Bloomberg, who is being scrutinized for his “past comments demeaning women and reported accusations of harassment at his company, Bloomberg LP,” notes Contorno.
Bloomberg has obtained a number of high-profile endorsements from Florida politicians, especially moderates not committed to former U.S. Vice President Joe Biden, including former Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn and House Minority Leader Kionne McGhee.
At least one recent poll of the race shows that Florida may be Bloomberg Country, with a narrow lead over the once seemingly-inevitable Biden.
St. Pete Polls conducted the survey among likely Florida voters. More than 27% selected Bloomberg as their top choice. Biden secured just under 26% support in the survey.
That’s within the poll’s margin of error, which is 1.8 percentage points. But it marks a drastic shift from the previous snapshot of the race taken by St. Pete Polls, when Biden performed 15 points better.
That version showed Bloomberg in second place with 17% support. Biden, meanwhile, received 41% of the vote.
