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Online is the next battleground in governor’s race

in Statewide/Top Headlines by

Shortly after a “Liberal Jack Latvala website launched, an anti-Adam Putnam/Richard Corcoran Twitter account has started tweeting criticism of the declared and presumptive GOP candidates for governor.

The “Conservative Watch” account, which goes by the handle @CWNewsUpdates, was created in June, billing itself as “your source for the latest news and commentary on politics and business by conservative leaders and writers.”

On Wednesday, it tweeted that “Adam Putnam wants you to think he’s a citrus farmer—but for 21 yrs he’s farmed campaign cash from special interests.” A photo of Putnam carried the caption, “Career Politician for more than 20 years.”

On Thursday, a second tweet posted: “Richard Corcoran said he would fight Crony Capitalism. In reality, he restored all funding to Florida’s corporate incentive slush fund,” apparently referring to Enterprise Florida, the state’s economic development organization, and/or VISIT FLORIDA, the tourism marketing agency.

Putnam, the current Commissioner of Agriculture, is actively campaigning for the GOP’s 2018 nomination for governor. Corcoran, the state’s House Speaker and Land O’ Lakes Republican, is widely expected to enter the governor’s race next year.

Last week, a website surfaced after state Sen. Latvala, the Clearwater Republican and Senate Appropriations chair, announced his bid for the governor’s mansion.

It was soon reported by POLITICO Florida that a “longtime political consultant for … Putnam is behind (the ‘Liberal Jack Latvala’) website.”

Putnam spokeswoman Amanda Bevis told POLITICO Florida the site is not “a campaign effort”: “I saw it when it popped up in my Twitter feed like everyone else,” she said.

The website, however, has a disclaimer linking it to a political committee, United Conservatives for Florida. The “Conservative Watch” Twitter account does not.

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