Mike Bloomberg to campaign in Florida on Super Tuesday

Image via AP.

Mike Bloomberg will spend Super Tuesday in Florida. Bloomberg has planned stops in Miami, Orlando and West Palm Beach throughout the day as other presidential hopefuls focus on states holding elections.

Florida does not have its primary until March 17.

“Mike’s support is continuing to grow here in Florida, and we’re excited to have him in the state as the national focus shifts to this critical battleground,” said Scott Kosanovich, Florida State Director for Mike Bloomberg 2020. “The momentum in Florida is with Mike because Floridians are ready for a progressive leader with the experience, vision, and national organization it will take to defeat Donald Trump.”

Bloomberg’s campaign has been building a robust operation in Florida. He’s been spending heavily on television advertising for weeks even as other Democrats in the race have waited until recent days to begin reserving airtime.

Bloomberg will start the day at his Little Havana field office located at 1756 SW 8th St. in Miami. Doors open at 9:30 a.m. with an expected 10 a.m. start time.

Bloomberg heads next to his Orlando field office located at 29 S. Orange Ave. Doors open at 12:30 p.m. for an estimated 1 p.m. start time.

He’ll end the day back in South Florida at the Palm Beach Convention Center Grand Ballroom located at 650 Okeechobee Blvd. in West Palm Beach. Door open to the public at 7 p.m.

A total of 14 states and one U.S. territory go to the polls Tuesday for the biggest single day of voting in the Presidential Preference Primary. Nearly a third of all delegates will be awarded.

Those states include, for Democratic primaries, Alabama with its 52 delegates; Arkansas with 31 delegates; California with 415 delegates; Colorado with 67 delegates; Maine with 24 delegates; Massachusetts with 91; Minnesota with 75; North Carolina with 110 delegates; Oklahoma with 37; Tennessee with 64; Texas with 228; Utah with 29; Vermont with 16 delegates and Virginia with 99 delegates.

American Samoans will also vote Tuesday for the territory’s six delegates.

Bloomberg’s decision to rally in a state that does not participate in Super Tuesday is bold, but not entirely out of left field. Many Florida counties began early voting this week for the state’s 219 delegates, which are awarded to candidates who receive at least 15% of the popular vote in the primary.

From a strategy perspective, many voters in Super Tuesday might be heading to the polls on Election Day with a candidate already chosen. In Florida, with two weeks left before its Election Day, there may be a larger share of undecided voters to capture.

On the other side of that strategy though, Super Tuesday could be a make or break moment for Bloomberg considering he did not participate in any of the nation’s first four primaries and caucuses (Iowa and Nevada caucused while New Hampshire and South Carolina held primaries.)

If Bloomberg does not make a strong showing on Super Tuesday, he may face calls to withdraw from the race before Florida’s primary comes.

However, this year’s Democratic Presidential Preference Primary, due to its large field that carried on throughout early voting states, may face a brokered convention where no candidate receives the 1,991 delegates needed to secure the party’s nomination.

If that happens, delegates can alternate candidates to vote for another candidate. Only Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders has said he favors a system where the candidate with the most delegates receives the nomination even if that number doesn’t meet the required threshold.

His opponents all favor following existing rules that allow delegates to revote until a majority is reached.

Sen. Elizabeth Warren’s campaign, for example, has hinted that a brokered or contested convention is their final strategy.

With that strategy in mind, Bloomberg may opt to stay in the race even if his Super Tuesday performance is not the knockout punch he had hoped for.