TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (AP) - Even in his hometown, Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum had to acknowledge he’s an underdog among Democrats running for Florida governor.
As the mayor was taking questions Wednesday at a Tiger Bay Club luncheon, an attendee suggested the position of lieutenant governor better suits him.
Gillum initially chuckled.
“That doesn’t surprise me,” he said. “I don’t have a famous last name and I cannot stroke my own check to become the next governor of the state of Florida. I’m going to have to do this the old fashioned way.”
His response was a reference to his primary opponents. Former U.S. Rep. Gwen Graham, who is also from Tallahassee, is the daughter of former Governor and U.S. Sen. Bob Graham. Orlando-area businessman Chris King wrote a $1 million check as he began his campaign, and millionaire Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine is expected to get in the race and spend part of his personal fortune on the race.
But Gillum said he has a longer record of public policymaking than any of his opponents. Gillum was a 23-year-old Florida A&M student when he became the youngest person elected to the Tallahassee city commission in 2003. He was elected mayor in 2014.
Gillum said he realizes many see his success as improbable, but his strategy will include campaigning in places usually ignored by Democrats, like the conservative Panhandle and The Villages retirement community that is heavily Republican. He noted that the last two governor’s races have been decided by about a single percentage point, and Democrats need to reach beyond Democratic strongholds in South Florida.
“It is not a winning strategy to camp out in the bottom three counties of this state and think that we’re going to win. This is not the electoral college. You don’t win Miami-Dade, Broward and Palm Beach and lose everything else and win this state,” Gillum said.
Republican Gov. Rick Scott can’t seek a third term next year because of term limits. Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam is the most prominent Republican in the race.
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This story has been corrected to reflect that Gwen Graham is a former U.S. representative, not a current congresswoman.
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