Florida Politics - Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government.

Guest AuthorSeptember 25, 2014

As time goes by, it appears that Amendment 2 is facing serious opposition from likely voters. Though the press has loved quoting a flawed Quinnipiac Poll that showed 88 percent of voters were in support, once pollsters began asking the question as it would appear on the ballot, support has dropped significantly to somewhere between […]

Guest AuthorSeptember 24, 2014

Third in a series about polling. Every cycle some pollsters seem to get it right. Some get it wrong. Why? To answer that question, it’s vital to understand that predicting what the electorate will look like matters — it really matters. And perhaps the single most important variable that pollsters must properly balance, especially in […]

Martin DyckmanSeptember 18, 2014

Voters across Florida cast ballots in November 2000 to say whether they wanted to continue electing most of their circuit and county court judges or would let the governor appoint them. Election was the overwhelming favorite everywhere. In Duval, Nassau and Clay counties, which comprise the Fourth Circuit, it was the choice of 69.3 percent […]

Guest AuthorSeptember 18, 2014

John Morgan, the face of Morgan & Morgan, one of the largest law firms in the country, is often portrayed as larger than life. Some days it seems that you can’t turn on your television without seeing his concerned face and Kentucky accent earnestly suggesting, “If you’ve been in an accident, call Morgan & Morgan […]

Bruce RitchieSeptember 18, 2014

State Rep. Jimmy Patronis told me more than once that I would miss him after this year when he leaves the Florida Legislature because of term limits. Maybe I won’t be covering him in the Legislature any more. But he’ll still be in Tallahassee. Gov. Rick Scott on Thursday appointed Patronis, R-Panama City, to the […]

Peter SchorschSeptember 15, 2014

Labor Day is at least a week into the rearview mirror, so the white pants should be closeted away until next June. The kids are back at school, football has returned to the tube, and, even in Florida, the temperature has dropped a degree or two. In other words, elections are less than two months away. […]

Peter SchorschSeptember 15, 2014

With five weeks left in Florida’s governor’s race, the contest is almost exactly where prognosticators expected it to be. The most recent numbers from Survey USA (ranked by data guru Nate Silver as the most reliable pollsters operating this cycle in the state) peg the race at Rick Scott 43 percent, Charlie Crist 42 percent. […]

Julie DelegalSeptember 14, 2014

Former and would-be Florida Gov. Charlie Crist has defied this columnist’s prediction. Coming out on a policy that has divided Florida for 16 years was definitely against the odds. The Tanned One has chutzpah. The policy is education reform, and, as governor, Crist stood shoulder-to-shoulder with his predecessor, Jeb Bush, for whom education is now […]

Daniel TilsonSeptember 9, 2014

I’ve taken an unofficial follow-up poll in Florida’s big Election 2014 Rick Scott-Charlie Crist race. As in 2010, it was a one-person poll done face-to-face with my sometimes car mechanic. Call him Bobby. Four years ago it was accidental, a pre-repair test drive conversation that touched on the upcoming gubernatorial election, with Chief Financial Officer […]

Bob SparksSeptember 9, 2014

Campaigns begin long before Labor Day each year, but the attention span of millions of voters is short prior to September. What is said and done during the fall by incumbents and challengers runs a great risk of defining a candidate and his or her party. The results can be devastating. Republicans painfully remember Todd […]

Tag: Charlie Crist
Aerial photo courtesy Jesse Biter.

Barney Bishop: Amendment 2 not needed; we already have Charlotte’s Web

Steve Vancore: To be accurate, pollsters must understand who is really going to vote

Martin Dyckman: How the First District Court of Appeal ignored Florida voters

Gary Stein: On Tim Morgan: The man behind the man behind the fight for medical marijuana in Florida

Bruce Ritchie: Rep. Jimmy Patronis’ appointment to the PSC is no surprise

Five critical political questions leading up to November’s election

Gubernatorial race is a politician version of “The Hustler”

Julie Delegal: Charlie Crist and the Voucher Factory

Daniel Tilson: An unofficial Crist-Scott poll — my mechanic is leaning to the right

Bob Sparks: Democratic candidates must overcome flaws of party leadership