Peter Schorsch - page 447

Leading Republican Sens. John Thrasher, Jack Latvala and Joe Negron each appear to have little problem cruising to victory in Tuesday night’s primary contests. As of 8 p.m., Thrasher, the St. Augustine Republican chairs the powerful Senate Rules Committee, received about 71 percent of the vote in the contest against Derek Hankerson in Senate District 6, which includes parts of St. Johns, Flagler, Volusia and Putnam Counties. In November, Thrasher will face Democrat Kathleen Trued and no-party candidate Greg Feldman Negron, a Stuart…

Keep Reading

Former state Rep. Brad Drake is one-step closer to his Tallahassee return, now that he won Tuesday’s GOP primary for House District 5. The Walton County Republican defeated Emerald Coast Realtor Jan Hooks by a margin of 72 to 28 percent. “I’m very thankful to the voters of District 5 for giving me the opportunity to serve our community again. Our team has worked hard to earn this victory, knocking on doors and spreading the word about my campaign, and…

Keep Reading

Bay County business executive Jay Trumbull defeated a crowded pack of Republicans with 43 percent of the vote Tuesday to win the GOP primary for House District 6. Following Trumbull was Thelma Rohan, who received 24 percent of the vote, and Melissa Hagan with 23 percent. Tho Bishop came in last with 10 percent. Trumbull, 24, now advances to face Democrat Jamie Shepard, write-in candidate Jerry Wyche and Green Party Henry Newman Lawrence III in November to succeed term-limited state…

Keep Reading

Gov. Charlie Crist has won the Democratic nomination to seek his old job with his new party. The victory Tuesday is another step in Crist’s attempt at a political comeback. He will now face Republican Gov. Rick Scott. Here is a compilation of reactions and statements to Crist’s win and the commencement of the general election in Florida’s governor’s race. Governor Rick Scott: “The next few months are about talk versus action. That means Florida will have a choice between…

Keep Reading

After hearing negative campaign messages about window-peepers, death panels and more, voters finally settled the political fracas to pick the Republican nominee in House District 74. Venice orthopedic surgeon Julio Gonzalez defeated Nokomis attorney and former Broward County Republican Party treasurer Richard DeNapoli by about 15 points, capping off one of the most acrimonious— and expensive — campaigns in the state. DeNapoli conceded at 7:45 p.m. Gonzalez, a Navy veteran, had his work cut out for him from the start. First, citing…

Keep Reading

Chris Sprowls will face incumbent Democrat Rep. Carl “Z” Zimmermann for House District 65 in November, after easily winning Tuesday’s GOP primary campaign. With 66 percent of the vote, the Tarpon Springs Republican beat opponent Debbie Faulkner to become the GOP nominee for the seat covering Tarpon Springs, Dunedin, Palm Harbor and East Lake. Throughout the campaign, the first-time candidate demonstrated strong community support from all over Tampa Bay, leading the race in both fundraising and endorsements. One of SaintPetersBlog’s…

Keep Reading

Bill Young  follows his father’s example by handily winning his first campaign for House District 68 with 80 percent of the vote. Young, son of U.S. Rep. C.W. Bill Young — the Republican who represented Pinellas County for four decades until his passing in October — defeated Joshua Black by a margin of 80 to 20 percent in the GOP primary for the district covering eastern Pinellas County, parts of Pinellas Park and St. Petersburg. Young has proven a perceptive campaigner and effective…

Keep Reading