Florida, with the two additional electoral votes it won in the 2010 Census sweepstakes, is going to be a very important presidential battleground next year, as it always is. But will the state also feature a competitive Senate contest?
Early polling suggests that the race is Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson’s to lose. But early polls are not necessarily good ones. Otherwise, Sen. Charlie Crist would be giving proud speeches on the Senate floor instead of making embarrassing YouTube videos about his copyright transgressions.
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The chances for a competitive race improve with this week’s fundraising numbers from one of the three announced Republican challengers. Mike Haridopolos, the Florida state Senate’s current president raised a rather surprisingly good $2.6 million in the first quarter of the year. Haridopolos, who represents a district in the Treasure Coast region, now boasts a campaign warchest of $2.5 million on hand — at least half as large as the one the incumbent is expected to unveil (between $4.5 million and $5 million) in the coming week.
Among the well-known donors to Haridopolos’ campaign is NASCAR Vice President Jim France. There’s also Frank Tsamoutales, a national finance co-chairman for Mike Huckabee in 2008, and before that for Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. (Haridopolos supported Huckabee in 2008.) One big business name is Brent Sembler, Vice Chairman of The Sembler Company, a commercial developer. Sembler’s support is supposed to demonstrate that one of Haridopolos’ rivals, former state House Speaker Adam Hasner, does not have a lock on his fellow Jewish Republicans’ support. Also featured on the donor list is H. Wayne Huizenga, son of the president of the Miami Dolphins and a big pro-life advocate in the state.
Al Cardenas, chairman of the American Conservative Union, held a fundraiser for him.
Can Haridopolos translate all of this money into a serious race? Florida is a very competitive state, but Nelson, the only remaining Democrat holding statewide office, tends to outperform the national party. He won a close but comfortable race in 2000, even as Al Gore lost the state by the narrowest margin. In 2006, Nelson easily won re-election against former Republican Rep. Katherine Harris.
In addition to Hasner and Haridopolos, former appointed Sen. George LeMieux, R, has thrown his hat into the ring, but he did so after the end of the first quarter. Florida’s primary is in August 2012 — well over a year away.
