'I think he’s the future': Despite loss in governor's race, Gillum still has political clout

Jeffrey Schweers | Tallahassee Democrat

Show Caption Hide Caption Andrew Gillum's Concession Speech |Video Andrew Gillum delivers his concession speech after losing a close race to governor-elect Ron DeSantis.

Andrew Gillum’s historic run for Florida governor may not have brought him all the way home, but it did set the stage for a promising future for the former mayor of Tallahassee, several friends, consultants and political analysts told the Tallahassee Democrat.

That future includes running for higher office, making public speaking engagements, a regular pundit spot on cable news network, and a return to his old bosses at People for the American Way.

“I think he’s the future,” said Reggie Cardozo, a political consultant who has known Gillum since their college days working for the state Democratic Party. “Folks like me thought win, lose, or draw he is the future. Whatever it is he wants to do he most definitely has the ability to do. This is not a loss that hurts him or prohibits him from doing whatever he wants.”

Gillum campaigned hard and took a close second to Tea Party Republican Ron DeSantis, a three-term congressman whose campaign was buoyed by the endorsement of President Donald Trump. Even though the .41 percent margin was close enough to trigger a machine recount, the final numbers didn't move the needle enough to change the Election night outcome.

“He spoke to the electorate, to people who were wealthy and not wealthy, young and old, North and South. He’s an excellent communicator able to deliver his message to thousands of Floridians,” Cardozo said. “Florida is a beast of a state to win in a statewide election and it looks like he did a great job.”

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In a tweet Friday afternoon, Kevin Cate, one of Gillum’s chief consultants, said, “The @AndrewGillum campaign was doing something much bigger than just trying to win an election. And we did. And we still are.”

In an earlier tweet, he said the lineup for the 2022 Democratic Governor’s Primary would depend on whether Gillum ran for president in 2020.

Appearing on AM Joy on MSNBC Sunday morning, Gillum chuckled when host Joy Reid asked if a run for president was next on his list of things to do. "I want to stay married. I owe my wife a vacation, and I owe my kids a couple of Saturdays to the soccer meets," Gillum said, sidestepping the question.

Gillum reiterated what he said in his pre-recorded concession speech posted on Facebook Saturday that he would continue working for Florida voters, including fighting for the issues he and the more than 4 million people who voted for him care about.

"My eyes are going to be right here on Florida, what it is we do to expand Medicaid, what we do around criminal justice reform, what we do for these 1.4 million folks reentering society who want a chance to be heard in this process," Gillum said.

"And then, for whoever's running for president I want to make sure we that have an electoral system that it's fair, that it's balanced, that every legally cast vote is counted, so that Florida can really become a state where people have elections integrity and believe that if they go out and do the work of casting their vote that it is counted so we get a fair shot at flipping this state blue in 2020."

As of Monday, Gillum no longer held elective office — a first since he was elected to the City Commission during his senior year at FAMU in 2003. But staying out of politics isn’t his future, he told Rolling Stone magazine before the final results were tabulated.

“Quite frankly, if I’m unsuccessful in this race — after a legitimate vote has been taken and after a legitimate count has been completed, and if I’m not the victor here — what I have said, certainly in this moment that we now find ourselves, is that I’m not leaving the field,” Gillum said.

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But the best player and team don’t always win, Tallahassee lawyer Charles Hobbs said.

“As for Mayor Gillum, there will be more games to play and I leave you with this reminder that in 2000, Barack Obama was destroyed in a congressional race against Bobby Rush,” Hobbs posted on Facebook after the election. “Obama was dejected, devastated and contemplated giving up politics and practicing law full time. Four years later, Obama won a U.S. Senate race and four years after that, he became the first Black President of the United States. There is a great chance that Mayor Gillum may become the second.”

Many experts, including Republicans, believed Gillum ran a better campaign than DeSantis, energizing groups of voters both parties have historically had a hard time motivating. But race, Gillum’s ethical problems and an FBI investigation hanging over City Hall factored into his loss.

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During the contentious, litigious recount, while Republicans and Democrats engaged in a scorched earth campaign over the razor-thin U.S. Senate race, political observers said Gillum appeared to be tending to his political future, with the odds of winning a recount in the governor’s race was slim to none.

Gillum stayed above the fray barn-storming the state from church to church preaching the gospel that every legal vote should be counted. DeSantis also maintained calm, expressing frustration with counties that couldn’t manage to conduct an election tabulation without problems.

Ron Sachs, a longtime communications consultant, mentioned another candidate who lost his first race for statewide office — Jeb Bush.

“We’ve seen candidates who have lost, come back and run again,” Sachs said. “Jeb lost in 1994, and he learned from it. He came back a much more viable and persuasive candidate, and it made him a more effective governor.”

What Gillum has going for him is a natural gift for communication, Sachs said.

“Andrew Gillum was by far the most naturally gifted communicator. Without notes he would give a compelling statement in a passionate way about any issue,” Sachs said. “These gifts combine to make him an important figure not only in state politics but nationally.”

Darrick McGhee, a Republican who is a friend and FAMU classmate of Gillum’s, said it was apparent in college Gillum was going to make a big mark on the state or national political scene.

“If you knew Andrew in college you foresaw this coming. He just stood out,” said McGhee, vice president of government relations at Johnson and Blanton. “I wasn’t shocked when he said he was going to run, even when people said wait your turn.”

Gillum’s organizing skills were evident with his Arrive With Five campaign, an initiative to get college friends with cars to bring at least four other people to the polls. As a gubernatorial candidate, he connected with college students and got them interested and motivated to be informed and to vote.

“Andrew Gillum is in top tier of the Democratic Party’s future," McGhee said. “He’ll bounce back really fast. I don’t see him running for governor in four years. I don’t see him positioning himself for Senate and 2020 might be too soon for a presidential run. I can see him running for president in 2024.”

“Everybody needs to be mindful that he’s not going away, as Gillum said himself,” McGhee aded. “The GOP makes a mistake if they ignore the guy.”

Contact Schweers at jschweers@tallahassee.com. Follow him on Twitter @jeffschweers.