Democrat Andrew Gillum wins Florida primary, could become state’s first black governor

Ana Ceballos | Naples

Show Caption Hide Caption Fla winners: Liberal & Trump-backed candidate A liberal Florida Democrat pulled off an upset victory in the state's primary for governor while President Trump's favored candidate cruised to victory for the GOP. Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum will face congressman Ron DeSantis in November. (Aug. 29)

Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum, a progressive Democrat, is one step closer to making Florida history after winning his party's nomination for the gubernatorial race on Tuesday.

Should he win in November, Gillum will be Florida's first black governor.

He'll have to beat Ron DeSantis, a three-term Republican congressman backed by President Donald Trump, in a nationally-watched November general election that will test the president's influence.

Republican primary voters overwhelmingly supported DeSantis in Tuesday's election over Adam Putnam, a 20-year political veteran once considered the front-runner until Trump interjected.

Democrats backed Gillum, who received the support of U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders of Vermont and other progressives across the country despite the shadow cast over his administration by a federal investigation.

With the race called for DeSantis minutes after polls closed, Putnam addressed supporters just before 8:20 p.m.

“When one door closes another one opens,” Putnam said. “Let’s not dwell on the closed one tonight but instead on putting Florida first.”

I want to congratulate @AndrewGillum. The truth is after 20 years of one-party rule, Florida simply can’t afford another Republican governor. That’s why I’ve pledged to do everything I can to help Mayor Gillum defeat DeSantis in November. Please join us in moving Florida forward. pic.twitter.com/qiI2xDjWkr — Gwen Graham (@GwenGraham) August 29, 2018

In the crowded Democratic primary for governor, voters also considered former Congresswoman Gwen Graham, who was considered the early front-runner; former Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine; Palm Beach billionaire Jeff Greene; and Orlando businessman Chris King.

Graham, who represented a conservative north Florida district in Congress, has been in the race the longest, and early on was considered the front-runner. That status was challenged over the summer by Levine, who used nearly $27 million of his personal money to swamp Florida’s 10 expensive media markets starting in November, far earlier than any other candidate on TV.

The 55-year-old's primary rivals have poked holes in her congressional voting record and criticized her for being too conservative and not progressive enough to be the Democratic nominee.

While in Congress, for example, Graham voted for the Keystone XL pipeline and her primary foes have attacked her for not voting often enough with President Barack Obama . She also has been hit for denying taking political contributions from the sugar industry, which is a central focus for many Florida voters concerned about toxic algae.

As her male opponents attacked her in debates, Graham coined the phrase "Gwen and the men" in the race.

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Graham and Levine later were challenged with the entrance in the race of Greene, a brash Democrat who made a failed U.S. Senate bid in 2010. He quickly spent $37 million from his own wealth for television ads, a move that cut into voters supporting Levine, and again gave Graham her front-runner status.

Greene and Levine are both wealthy South Florida Jewish candidates, and from the first moment Greene entered the race, most observers believed he and Levine would fight for the same pool of voters.

Greene attacked Levine in television ads, most notably one called "Levine Latrine" which used stock video footage from other countries in an attempt to poke holes on the former mayor's environmental record.

Greene’s campaign, though, unexpectedly pulled nearly all of his television ads last week, which was viewed as a white flag. Across the vast state of Florida, it’s important to be on TV to reach voters in the final days of the campaign. Greene also canceled his election night party, another sign he didn't see the likelihood of a win.

Gillum has been perceived as the most progressive Democrat in the race. The 39-year-old had the backing of longtime national Democratic donors Tom Steyer and George Soros, and a long list of liberal Hollywood celebrities. His campaign has been pushing the message of a late “surge” in recent weeks, but most public polling had him behind the top tier candidates.

Congressman Ron DeSantis is a special person who has done an incredible job. He is running in Tuesdays Primary for Governor of Florida….Strong on Crime, Borders and wants Low Taxes. He will be a great Governor and has my full and total Endorsement! — Donald J. Trump (@realDonaldTrump) August 27, 2018

For Republicans, the story has been Trump. As soon as he formally endorsed DeSantis, Putnam’s double-digit polling lead and money advantage evaporated. DeSantis became the favorite in the race even though the Iraq war veteran is fairly new to Florida's political scene.

But not Putnam, whose plans to become Florida's next governor have been decades in the making.

The 44-year-old started his career as an elected official at the age of 22 as a state House representative. The fifth-generation Floridian then went on to serve five years in Congress representing the Central Florida-based 12th congressional district.

With decades of experience in public office, he came into the governor's race and quickly out-raised all candidates. But spending nearly $30 million against DeSantis seemed not enough to blunt his rise with the power of Trump. DeSantis only spent $16 million in an eight-month period.

Toward the end of the race, Putnam's fundraising dried up and money from Florida's political players shifted to DeSantis. This also came after mistakes made by Putnam's state agency since 2012 were made public. Some errors that haunted his candidacy included lapses in background checks needed to issue concealed weapon permits.