Democratic gubernatorial nominee Charlie Crist puts the spotlight on North Florida

Democratic gubernatorial nominee Charlie Crist was in Duval County Wednesday visiting small businesses in the Normandy area.

Crist said North Florida is an important part of the state for his campaign.

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“I’m always glad to be in Jacksonville and look forward to a little seafood and soul food and visiting with local folks and finding out what’s on their mind,” said Crist.

Crist himself has acknowledged a lack of focus on Northeast Florida contributed to his loss to former Gov. Rick Scott in the 2014 election.

Scott bested Crist by about 34,000 votes in Duval County during that race.

Statewide Crist came up 64,000 votes short.

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The voting trends in Duval have shifted quite a bit since Crist lost the county in his 2014 bid for Governor.

Former President Donald Trump eked out a 6,000-vote lead in Duval in 2016, but in 2018 Democratic gubernatorial nominee Andrew Gillum pulled a 17,000-vote advantage and President Joe Biden won the county by nearly 20,000 votes in 2020.

University of North Florida political science professor Sean Freeder argued winning Duval is a must for Crist, but not likely the end all, be all for an overall victory.

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“It’s not just about winning those counties with big urban areas. It’s getting a high enough turnout and getting a high enough percentage in those areas to make the difference as well,” said Freeder.

Currently, Democrats and Republicans have cast virtually the same number of votes in Duval.

Freeder said he anticipates Democrats will ultimately take a larger lead, but if not, low voter turnout for Democrats in the county could forecast voter enthusiasm statewide.

“That would mean he’s under performing in Duval. Crist would probably be underperforming everywhere else. That would be a pretty bad outcome for the Crist campaign. It would be very difficult to imagine how he could win if Duval goes to DeSantis,” said Freeder.

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Crist will face off against Governor Ron DeSantis next Monday at 7 PM in the one-and-only debate ahead of the November 8th General Election.

In a statement the DeSantis campaign also weighed in on the importance of the Northeast Florida vote.

“Governor DeSantis works day in and day out to protect parental rights, keep our communities safe, protect our environment, and fight back against Biden’s inflationary policies. The Governor will always fight for our state, and we look forward to sharing his Freedom Agenda on a statewide stage for Northeast Florida and the rest of the state,” said Lindsey Curnutte, a spokesperson with DeSantis’ campaign.

Crist will face off against Gov. Ron DeSantis next Monday at 7 PM in the one-and-only debate ahead of the November 8th General Election.

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