The race for the Florida District 2 House seat might prove the enemy of an enemy can certainly be a friend.
Life-long Republican Ed Gray, a Santa Rosa School Board member and former Gulf Breeze Mayor, gave a $500 donation to rival Democrat Jeremy Lau in the June 11 general election.
As reported by Lewis Cooper for PNJ.com, Gray, who finished second in the May 13 GOP primary to tea party supporter Mike Hill, gave Lau the maximum allowable contribution under Florida law.
Lau, 40, said he appreciates the backing.
“I had called Ed Gray the day after the primary to congratulate him on running an issue-based campaign,” Lau told the Pensacola-based news website.
“Honestly, I didn’t think he deserved the smearing that he received,” Lau said. “He had served Gulf Breeze and Santa Rosa County for 20 years of his life, and I felt like if you are going to run a campaign, you should give him the respect that he’s earned, quite honestly.”
Lau believes that if Grey had won the six-person GOP primary, the campaign would focus solely on issues. Instead, he feels the race became a “smear effort.”
Gray would not comment on Hill’s tactics in the campaign; instead, he told Cooper Lau is the “best candidate.” Gray also insists that he does not automatically fall along party lines.
“I vote for the candidate, not the party,” Gray told Cooper. “I feel like Mr. Lau, first of all, is not owned by the insurance lobby. I feel like he is going to be much more objective. Without a doubt, according to the contributions report, Mr. Hill is owned by the insurance industry.”
The PNJ.com story goes on to say that campaign-finance reporting shows Hill listing donations from four different committees tied to insurance.
The Committee of Florida Agents, Financial Reform in Government, Florida Agents for Insurance Reform and the Florida Organization of Agents each donated $500 to Hill. All four use the same post office box address in Tallahassee.
In addition, several individuals and business that list insurance as occupations have donated to the tea party activist.
“Those are State Farm insurance agents who contributed. They want to see one of their own there, but that doesn’t mean I am owned by the insurance industry,” Hill told Cooper.
“You need these funds to run a campaign,” Hill added. “Campaigns aren’t free. For me, that doesn’t mean I am beholden to anyone. I am still going to make decisions that I think are best for our constituents.”
Early voting has begun in the District 2 House race, which represents precincts in Escambia and Santa Rosa Counties. It covers the cities of Pensacola and Gulf Breeze, as well as areas of Pensacola Beach, Perdido Key and Pensacola Naval Air Station.
