Despite mixed to unfavorable ratings, Rick Scott benefited greatly from the midtermGOP wave in which Republicans made significant gains across the country.[3] Scott was one of six Republican gubernatorial pick-ups nationwide (counting Crist as an Independent).
The tight and highly contentious election was one of the standout races in 2010. Despite not professing direct allegiance to the movement,[4] Scott benefited from support and endorsement by Tea Party activists,[3][5] an influential conservative voting bloc of the 2010 midterms. Furthermore, Scott ran aggressively against the Affordable Care Act (Obamacare), and exit polls indicated considerable support for that position.[6]
Alex Sink, the CFO of Florida, was mentioned as a possible candidate to run for Senate or Governor in 2010,[7][8] but initially declined. When Charlie Crist announced he would not run for re-election, Sink immediately announced her campaign for governor. Sink was the wife of Bill McBride, who ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2002.
Sink faced only token opposition in the primary. Her lone opponent was former Socialist Party presidential nominee Brian Moore.[9] On primary day, Sink won the Democratic nomination with nearly 77% of the vote.
In May 2009, Republican incumbent governor Charlie Crist announced he would not run for re-election, and instead would run for U.S. Senate.[11] The move immediately turned the race competitive, as GOP-hopefuls lined up to run for the open seat. Former congressman and Florida Attorney GeneralBill McCollum emerged as the early favorite. McCollum had previously lost the election for Senate in 2000, and lost the Republican nomination for Senate in 2004. This would be his third attempt at a major statewide campaign.
Just before the deadline, Rick Scott jumped into the primary fight. Scott started dumping millions of his own personal fortune into the race.[12] The race quickly became one of the most expensive and "nasty" primary campaigns in recent Florida history.[13] Scott and McCollum lashed out with very negative attacks against each other. Scott ran as a political "outsider", and led some early polls, but McCollum re-took the lead in polls just before primary day. Scott benefited in the absentee voting, while McCollum expected to make up the difference based on turnout. On primary day, Scott won the nomination with just over 46% of the vote. The dejected McCollum team reluctantly conceded after midnight.
Brian P. Moore, marketing and executive director, project administrator and consultant, 2008 Socialist Party presidential nominee
Independence Party of Florida
Peter L. Allen, electrical inspector
No party affiliation
Michael E. Arth, policy analyst and urban designer who entered the race as a Democrat in June 2009 and later switched to no party affiliation in June 2010
Farid Khavari, economist, author, and small business owner
The race was dominated by the two major party candidates and spending on their behalf. By the October 25, 2010, Tampa debate between Scott and Sink, Scott had spent $60 million of his own money on the campaign compared to Sink's $28 million.[15] Total campaign expenditure for the race exceeded $100 million, far exceeding any previous spending for a governor's race in Florida.[16] Scott spent $78 million of his personal wealth in the race.[17] Sink made an issue of Scott's connections to Columbia/HCA, a Medicare billing fraud scandal.[3]
One of the turning points in the campaign came during the debate. During a commercial break, Sink's make-up artist delivered a text message on her cell phone to Sink, in direct violation of the debate rules. The rules infraction was immediately pointed out by Scott and the debate moderators.[18] Sink's team was accused of cheating during the debate, and the aide who delivered the message was fired from the campaign the next morning. Afterwards, media and observers were very critical of the gaffe.
The 2010 governor's race was one of Florida's closest, decided by just over 60,000 votes. Unlike the concurrent Senate race, the governor's race remained in doubt late into the night. When polls closed, Scott had a lead, but as the night progressed, the margin narrowed. The next day, with over 99% of precincts reporting, Scott maintained about a 1% lead in the raw vote.[3] Despite a small number of still-uncounted ballots from Palm Beach County, Sink's chances of winning were negligible, as Scott was still ahead by over 50,000 – much more than the 3,000 uncounted ballots, and more importantly, still above the threshold of 0.5% to trigger a mandatory recount.[3] Sink conceded on Wednesday.
Exit polls showed that Scott won among independents and the two candidates split the Hispanic vote.[3]
^"November 2, 2010 General Election". Florida Department of State. Retrieved May 15, 2022.
^Martinez resigned his seat in December 2008, and Crist appointed Republican George LeMieux to serve the remainder of Martinez's term. LeMieux declined to run for election, and Crist was one of three major candidates in the election for U.S. Senate.
^ abcdef"Money, message, mad electorate make Scott Fla. gov". The Washington Post. November 3, 2010. Retrieved October 21, 2014.
^Derby, Kevin (September 2, 2010). "TEA Party Backs Rick Scott for Governor in November". Sunshine State News. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
^Dockery, Paula (June 5, 2014). "Paula Dockery: Tea party stands by Rick Scott". Florida Today. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
^. Tampa Bay Times. August 25, 2008. Archived from the original on October 13, 2012. Retrieved August 29, 2010.
^Cotterell, Bill (January 16, 2009). "Alex Sink won't run for U.S. Senate in 2010". Tallahassee Democrat.
^Kam, Dara (July 24, 2010). "Low-profile Alex Sink faces even more obscure opponent in Democratic race for Florida governor". Palm Beach Post. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
^ ab"Florida Gubernatorial Primary Results". Politico. August 24, 2010. Retrieved August 24, 2010.
^"Florida governor announces run for Senate". CNN. May 12, 2009. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
^Deslatte, Aaron (July 30, 2010). "Ruling lets Rick Scott spend all he wants in governor's race vs. Bill McCollum". The Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
^Deslatte, Aaron (August 25, 2010). "Rick Scott beats Bill McCollum to end nasty GOP governor's primary fight". The Orlando Sentinel. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
^. Archived from the original on July 29, 2010. Retrieved June 23, 2010.
^"Governor's Race: Rick, Scott, Alex Sink save harshest word for last debate". Orlando Sentinel,
^Baribeau, Simone. "Florida Republican Scott Elected Governor After Record Spending". Bloomberg. Retrieved December 9, 2011.
^Madison, Lucy (April 14, 2011). "Rick Scott Wins Tight Florida Governor Race". CBS News. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
^"Aide fired over Florida debate foul". CNN. October 26, 2010. Retrieved October 17, 2014.
^. Cook Political Report. Archived from the original on October 28, 2010. Retrieved October 28, 2010.
2010, florida, gubernatorial, election, related, races, 2010, united, states, gubernatorial, elections, took, place, november, 2010, republican, turned, independent, incumbent, governor, charlie, crist, chose, second, term, instead, unsuccessfully, senate, sea. For related races see 2010 United States gubernatorial elections The 2010 Florida gubernatorial election took place on November 2 2010 Republican turned Independent incumbent Governor Charlie Crist chose not to run for a second term He instead ran unsuccessfully for the Senate seat vacated by Mel Martinez 2 This resulted in an open race for Governor of Florida in which Republican Rick Scott narrowly defeated Democrat Alex Sink 2010 Florida gubernatorial election 2006 November 2 2010 2014 Turnout48 7 1 9 1 Nominee Rick Scott Alex SinkParty Republican DemocraticRunning mate Jennifer Carroll Rod SmithPopular vote 2 619 335 2 557 785Percentage 48 9 47 7 County results Scott 40 50 50 60 60 70 Sink 40 50 50 60 60 70 70 80 Governor before electionCharlie CristIndependent Elected Governor Rick ScottRepublicanDespite mixed to unfavorable ratings Rick Scott benefited greatly from the midterm GOP wave in which Republicans made significant gains across the country 3 Scott was one of six Republican gubernatorial pick ups nationwide counting Crist as an Independent The tight and highly contentious election was one of the standout races in 2010 Despite not professing direct allegiance to the movement 4 Scott benefited from support and endorsement by Tea Party activists 3 5 an influential conservative voting bloc of the 2010 midterms Furthermore Scott ran aggressively against the Affordable Care Act Obamacare and exit polls indicated considerable support for that position 6 Contents 1 Primary Elections 1 1 Democratic 1 1 1 Candidates 1 2 Republican 2 General Election 2 1 Candidates 2 1 1 Republican 2 1 2 Democratic 2 1 3 Independence Party of Florida 2 1 4 No party affiliation 2 2 Predictions 2 3 Polling 2 3 1 Democratic primary 2 3 2 Republican primary 2 3 3 General election 2 3 4 Hypothetical Polls 3 Results 4 See also 5 References 6 External linksPrimary Elections EditDemocratic Edit Candidates Edit Alex Sink CFO of Florida teacher Brian Moore political activist 2008 Socialist Party USA Nominee for President of the United StatesAlex Sink the CFO of Florida was mentioned as a possible candidate to run for Senate or Governor in 2010 7 8 but initially declined When Charlie Crist announced he would not run for re election Sink immediately announced her campaign for governor Sink was the wife of Bill McBride who ran unsuccessfully for governor in 2002 Sink faced only token opposition in the primary Her lone opponent was former Socialist Party presidential nominee Brian Moore 9 On primary day Sink won the Democratic nomination with nearly 77 of the vote County results Democratic primary results 10 Party Candidate Votes Democratic Alex Sink 663 802 76 9 Democratic Brian Moore 199 896 23 1 Total votes 863 698 100 0 Republican Edit In May 2009 Republican incumbent governor Charlie Crist announced he would not run for re election and instead would run for U S Senate 11 The move immediately turned the race competitive as GOP hopefuls lined up to run for the open seat Former congressman and Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum emerged as the early favorite McCollum had previously lost the election for Senate in 2000 and lost the Republican nomination for Senate in 2004 This would be his third attempt at a major statewide campaign Just before the deadline Rick Scott jumped into the primary fight Scott started dumping millions of his own personal fortune into the race 12 The race quickly became one of the most expensive and nasty primary campaigns in recent Florida history 13 Scott and McCollum lashed out with very negative attacks against each other Scott ran as a political outsider and led some early polls but McCollum re took the lead in polls just before primary day Scott benefited in the absentee voting while McCollum expected to make up the difference based on turnout On primary day Scott won the nomination with just over 46 of the vote The dejected McCollum team reluctantly conceded after midnight County results Republican primary results 10 Party Candidate Votes Republican Rick Scott 595 474 46 4 Republican Bill McCollum 557 427 43 4 Republican Mike McCalister 130 056 10 1 Total votes 1 282 957 100 0 General Election EditCandidates Edit Republican Edit Bill McCollum Florida Attorney General and former U S Representative Rick Scott health care executive businessman and healthcare activist Mike McCalister businessmanDemocratic Edit Alex Sink Chief Financial Officer Brian P Moore marketing and executive director project administrator and consultant 2008 Socialist Party presidential nomineeIndependence Party of Florida Edit Peter L Allen electrical inspectorNo party affiliation Edit Michael E Arth policy analyst and urban designer who entered the race as a Democrat in June 2009 and later switched to no party affiliation in June 2010 Farid Khavari economist author and small business owner Daniel Imperato 14 Calvin Clarence C C ReedThe race was dominated by the two major party candidates and spending on their behalf By the October 25 2010 Tampa debate between Scott and Sink Scott had spent 60 million of his own money on the campaign compared to Sink s 28 million 15 Total campaign expenditure for the race exceeded 100 million far exceeding any previous spending for a governor s race in Florida 16 Scott spent 78 million of his personal wealth in the race 17 Sink made an issue of Scott s connections to Columbia HCA a Medicare billing fraud scandal 3 One of the turning points in the campaign came during the debate During a commercial break Sink s make up artist delivered a text message on her cell phone to Sink in direct violation of the debate rules The rules infraction was immediately pointed out by Scott and the debate moderators 18 Sink s team was accused of cheating during the debate and the aide who delivered the message was fired from the campaign the next morning Afterwards media and observers were very critical of the gaffe Predictions Edit Source Ranking As ofCook Political Report 19 Tossup October 14 2010Rothenberg 20 Tossup October 28 2010RealClearPolitics 21 Tossup November 1 2010Sabato s Crystal Ball 22 Lean R flip October 28 2010CQ Politics 23 Tossup October 28 2010Polling Edit Democratic primary Edit List of Democratic primary polling numbersPoll source Dates administered Alex Sink Michael E ArthMason Dixon June 24 26 2009 49 4 Republican primary Edit List of Republican primary polling numbersPoll source Dates administered Bill McCollum Rick Scott Paula DockeryQuinnipiac August 21 22 2010 39 35 Public Policy Polling August 21 22 2010 40 47 Mason Dixon August 17 19 2010 45 36 Quinnipiac August 11 16 2010 44 35 Sunshine State News August 12 15 2010 42 44 Mason Dixon August 9 11 2010 34 30 Ipsos Florida Newspapers dead link August 6 10 2010 32 42 Mason Dixon August 2 4 2010 31 37 The Florida Poll July 24 28 2010 25 41 Quinnipiac July 22 27 2010 32 43 Public Policy Polling July 16 18 2010 29 43 Florida Chamber of Commerce June 9 13 2010 30 35 Quinnipiac June 2 8 2010 31 44 Mason Dixon May 3 5 2010 38 24 7 Research 2000 November 16 18 2009 45 9 Strategic Vision May 29 31 2009 44 28 General election Edit Poll source Dates administered Bud Chiles I Rick Scott R Alex Sink D Mason Dixon May 3 5 2010 36 38 Rasmussen Reports May 16 2010 41 40 Rasmussen Reports June 7 2010 45 40 Quinnipiac June 7 2010 13 35 26 Florida Chamber of Commerce June 9 13 2010 15 31 26 Ipsos Reuters July 9 11 2010 12 34 31 Public Policy Polling July 16 18 2010 13 30 36 Quinnipiac July 22 27 2010 14 29 27 The Florida Poll July 24 28 2010 11 30 28 Rasmussen Reports August 2 2010 16 35 31 Ipsos Florida Newspapers dead link August 6 10 2010 14 30 29 Mason Dixon August 9 11 2010 17 24 40 Quinnipiac August 11 16 2010 12 29 33 Public Policy Polling August 21 22 2010 8 34 41 Rasmussen Reports August 25 2010 4 45 42 Rasmussen Reports September 1 2010 45 44 Sunshine State News September 1 7 2010 42 44 CNN September 2 7 2010 42 49 FOX News September 11 2010 41 49 Reuters Ipsos September 12 2010 45 47 Mason Dixon September 20 22 2010 40 47 Rasmussen Reports September 22 2010 50 44 Quinnipiac September 23 28 2010 49 43 CNN September 24 28 2010 47 45 Sunshine State News September 26 October 3 2010 44 42 TCPalm com Zogby September 27 29 2010 39 41 Florida Chamber of Commerce September 27 30 2010 46 42 Rasmussen Reports September 30 2010 46 41 Mason Dixon October 4 6 2010 40 44 Miami Dade College permanent dead link October 5 2010 52 46 Quinnipiac October 6 8 2010 45 44 Rasmussen Reports October 7 2010 50 47 PPP October 9 10 2010 41 46 Susquehanna October 12 13 2010 45 48 Suffolk October 14 17 2010 38 45 CNN Opinion Research October 15 19 2010 49 46 Ipsos St Pete Times October 15 19 2010 44 41 Rasmussen Reports October 18 2010 50 44 Naples Daily News Zogby October 18 21 2010 39 43 Quinnipiac October 18 24 2010 41 45 Susquehanna October 20 2010 45 45 Susquehanna Sunshine State News October 24 25 2010 47 45 Univ of South Fla Polytechnic October 23 27 2010 44 39 Quinnipiac October 25 31 2010 43 44 Mason Dixon October 26 27 2010 43 46 Rasmussen Reports October 27 2010 48 45 Susquehanna Sunshine State October 29 31 2010 46 49 Public Policy Polling October 30 31 2010 47 48 Hypothetical Polls Edit Bill McCollum R vs Alex Sink D vs Bud Chiles I Poll source Dates administered Bill McCollum Alex Sink Bud ChilesQuinnipiac August 11 16 2010 29 31 12 Mason Dixon August 9 11 2010 35 37 13 Ipsos Florida Newspapers dead link August 6 10 2010 26 30 12 Rasmussen Reports August 2 2010 27 31 20 The Florida Poll July 24 28 2010 26 27 12 Quinnipiac July 22 27 2010 27 26 14 Public Policy Polling July 16 18 2010 23 37 14 Ipsos Reuters July 9 11 2010 30 31 12 Florida Chamber of Commerce June 9 13 2010 30 26 15 Quinnipiac June 7 2010 33 25 19 Rasmussen Reports June 7 2010 40 38 Rasmussen Reports May 16 2010 43 35 Mason Dixon May 7 2010 45 36 Rasmussen Reports March 18 2010 47 36 Public Policy Polling March 5 8 2010 44 31 Rasmussen Reports February 18 2010 48 35 Fabrizo McLaughlin January 31 2010 41 32 Rasmussen Reports January 27 2010 46 35 Quinnipiac January 27 2010 41 31 lt 1 Rasmussen Reports December 14 2009 44 39 Research 2000 November 16 18 2009 35 33 St Pete Times Miami Herald Bay News 9 October 25 28 2009 37 38 Rasmussen Reports October 20 2009 46 35 Quinnipiac August 19 2009 38 34 1 Public Opinion Strategies August 4 5 2009 48 37 Rasmussen Reports June 22 2009 42 34 Quinnipiac June 2 7 2009 34 38 1 Mason Dixon May 14 18 2009 40 34 Mason Dixon March 30 April 1 2009 36 35 Results EditThe 2010 governor s race was one of Florida s closest decided by just over 60 000 votes Unlike the concurrent Senate race the governor s race remained in doubt late into the night When polls closed Scott had a lead but as the night progressed the margin narrowed The next day with over 99 of precincts reporting Scott maintained about a 1 lead in the raw vote 3 Despite a small number of still uncounted ballots from Palm Beach County Sink s chances of winning were negligible as Scott was still ahead by over 50 000 much more than the 3 000 uncounted ballots and more importantly still above the threshold of 0 5 to trigger a mandatory recount 3 Sink conceded on Wednesday Exit polls showed that Scott won among independents and the two candidates split the Hispanic vote 3 2010 Florida gubernatorial election 24 Party Candidate Votes Republican Rick Scott 2 619 335 48 87 3 31 Democratic Alex Sink 2 557 785 47 72 2 62 Independence Peter Allen 123 831 2 31 Independent C C Reed 18 842 0 35 Independent Michael E Arth 18 644 0 35 Independent Daniel Imperato 13 690 0 26 Independent Farid Khavari 7 487 0 14 Write ins 121 0 00 Plurality 61 550 1 15 5 92 Turnout 5 359 735Republican gain from Independent SwingSee also EditList of governors of Florida 2010 United States gubernatorial electionsReferences Edit November 2 2010 General Election Florida Department of State Retrieved May 15 2022 Martinez resigned his seat in December 2008 and Crist appointed Republican George LeMieux to serve the remainder of Martinez s term LeMieux declined to run for election and Crist was one of three major candidates in the election for U S Senate a b c d e f Money message mad electorate make Scott Fla gov The Washington Post November 3 2010 Retrieved October 21 2014 Derby Kevin September 2 2010 TEA Party Backs Rick Scott for Governor in November Sunshine State News Retrieved October 17 2014 Dockery Paula June 5 2014 Paula Dockery Tea party stands by Rick Scott Florida Today Retrieved October 17 2014 Exit Polls Florida 2010 Governor CNN Retrieved October 17 2014 Florida Democrats revel in gained ground Tampa Bay Times August 25 2008 Archived from the original on October 13 2012 Retrieved August 29 2010 Cotterell Bill January 16 2009 Alex Sink won t run for U S Senate in 2010 Tallahassee Democrat Kam Dara July 24 2010 Low profile Alex Sink faces even more obscure opponent in Democratic race for Florida governor Palm Beach Post Retrieved October 17 2014 a b Florida Gubernatorial Primary Results Politico August 24 2010 Retrieved August 24 2010 Florida governor announces run for Senate CNN May 12 2009 Retrieved October 17 2014 Deslatte Aaron July 30 2010 Ruling lets Rick Scott spend all he wants in governor s race vs Bill McCollum The Orlando Sentinel Retrieved October 17 2014 Deslatte Aaron August 25 2010 Rick Scott beats Bill McCollum to end nasty GOP governor s primary fight The Orlando Sentinel Retrieved October 17 2014 Florida Election Candidate Tracking System entry for Imperato Archived from the original on July 29 2010 Retrieved June 23 2010 Governor s Race Rick Scott Alex Sink save harshest word for last debate Orlando Sentinel Baribeau Simone Florida Republican Scott Elected Governor After Record Spending Bloomberg Retrieved December 9 2011 Madison Lucy April 14 2011 Rick Scott Wins Tight Florida Governor Race CBS News Retrieved October 17 2014 Aide fired over Florida debate foul CNN October 26 2010 Retrieved October 17 2014 2010 Governors Race Ratings Cook Political Report Archived from the original on October 28 2010 Retrieved October 28 2010 Governor Ratings Rothenberg Political Report Retrieved October 28 2010 2010 Governor Races RealClearPolitics Retrieved October 28 2010 THE CRYSTAL BALL S FINAL CALLS Sabato s Crystal Ball Retrieved October 28 2010 Race Ratings Chart Governor CQ Politics Archived from the original on October 5 2010 Retrieved October 28 2010 Florida Department of State Election Results doe dos state fl us Archived from the original on October 3 2011 External links EditFlorida Division of Elections Florida Governor Candidates at Project Vote Smart Campaign contributions for 2010 Florida Governor from Follow the Money 2010 Florida Gubernatorial General Election All Head to Head Matchups graph of multiple polls from Pollster com Election 2010 Florida Governor from Rasmussen Reports 2010 Florida Governor McCollum vs Sink from Real Clear Politics 2010 Florida Governor s Race from CQ Politics Race Profile in The New York TimesOfficial campaign websites Archived Peter Allen for Governor Michael E Arth for Governor Farid Khavari for Governor Rick Scott for Governor Alex Sink for Governor Retrieved from https en wikipedia org w index php title 2010 Florida gubernatorial election amp oldid 1137246669, wikipedia, wiki, book, books, library,
