Sugar donations to Florida governor candidates become an issue in 2018 election

As Florida gubernatorial primaries ramp up, candidates are making an issue of campaign contributions from the sugar industry.

Both parties' members have accepted them for decades, and critics say that's led to sugar interests having too much influence over lawmakers, especially U.S. Sugar Corp. of Clewiston and Florida Crystals Corp. of West Palm Beach.

MORE: SFWMD chief avoids question about sugar influence

Farms south of Lake Okeechobee block the natural flow of excess water south to the Everglades, so the Army Corps of Engineers discharges it east to the St. Lucie River and west to the Caloosahatchee River. The freshwater harms the salty St. Lucie.

MORE: TCPalm's complete coverage of the Indian River Lagoon

The sugar industry says farmers clean their water as much as possible, create jobs in the impoverished Glades and supply the U.S. with needed food.

TCPalm, which analyzed each candidate's campaign finance reports and stances on sugar, found one accepts the industry's contributions, two haven't said whether they will or won't, and three have renounced them.

Accepting sugar donations

Adam Putnam (R): U.S. Sugar has donated $340,000 to his PAC, Florida Grown, since January 2017. Florida Crystals has donated $65,000.

Putnam, the state's agricultural commissioner from Bartow, also has support from several business industry PACs that are partially funded by sugar donations, including PACs tied to Associated Industries of Florida.

Has not specified

Andrew Gillum (D): The Tallahassee mayor has not received any contributions from the sugar industry in his bid for governor, and has not specified whether he'd keep any if offered. A spokesman said Gillum doesn't want to "demonize" sugar industry workers.

Ron DeSantis (R): The Flagler County congressman isn't a stranger to sugar contributions. He received $7,500 when he first ran for Congress in 2012 and $4,500 from non-Florida sugar PACs during his first year in office.

While he hasn't said he won't take sugar donations for his gubernatorial campaign, he's not likely to get them.

Unlike many Florida delegates, DeSantis vocally opposes sugar subsidies, calling them "costly" to taxpayers. Since then, the sugar industry stopped contributing to him, and their relationship has soured.

DeSantis said the sugar industry is funding misleading attack ads against him, accusing him of supporting food stamps for illegal immigrants because he voted against the 2014 Farm Bill. DeSantis said he opposed the bill because he opposes sugar subsidies.

Has stopped accepting

Gwen Graham (D): The former congresswoman from Tallahassee and daughter of former Florida governor Bob Graham announced she would not accept sugar donations last week during a forum sponsored by the Everglades Trust, a nonprofit focused on protecting the Everglades.

While in Congress, Graham received more than $17,400 from the sugar industry in 2015 and 2016. Her campaign announced Tuesday it would donate the same amount to the Indian Riverkeeper, a nonprofit that advocates for the Indian River Lagoon.

Rejecting sugar donations

Philip Levine (D): The former Miami Beach mayor will not accept sugar donations, he announced in Martin County last month.

While he said he isn't sure the sugar industry is fully to blame for Lake Okeechobee discharges, he said it would not be "fair for a candidate to accept a donation from an organization that was potentially part of that problem."

Chris King (D): The Orlando real estate entrepreneur announced in the first days of his campaign he would not accept sugar contributions.

He blames Lake Okeechobee discharges on the sugar industry's influence over politicians, and has made the issue a major part of his platform.