Progressive billionaire Tom Steyer pledges another $5 million for Gillum, while another poll shows the Democrat in the lead

by | Sep 26, 2018

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Another poll shows Andrew Gillum leading Florida governor’s race, with the Democrat holding a 5-point lead over Ron DeSantis, 48 percent to 45  percent, among likely voters. That’s just outside the polls margin of error o f +/-4.7 percent. When you consider all registered voters surveyed, Gillum’s lead jumps to 8-points, 49 percent to 41 percent.

The NBC News/Marist College poll shows independent voters making the difference with Gillum holding a 51 percent to 38 percent lead among those voters who consider themselves independent.

The news of the latest poll numbers comes as progressive billionaire Tom Steyer, who has led calls for President Donald Trump’s impeachment and is a supporter of Gillum, said he will contribute another $5 million to help elect the Tallahassee mayor as Florida’s next governor,

“He’s a fierce gun control person, he’s been a climate champion,” Steyer told the New York Times for a report published Tuesday. “He’s called for the impeachment of the president. He’s been willing to talk plainly to Florida voters, and they’ve responded.”

Steyer, who donated close to $1.5 million to Gillum’s primary campaign, told the Times that he plans to target $5.2 million in the general election to Gillum, with about half of that money going to digital advertising and about $2 million would go into voter-turnout efforts by two organizations backed by Steyer, For Our Future and NextGen America.

Steyer, who says he’ll appear at a weekend rally with Gillum, told the Times his contribution will also have an influence on the U.S. Senate race in Florida between incumbents Bill Nelson and Gov. Rick Scott.

“If it works in 2018 for Andrew Gillum, it will work in ’18 for Senator Nelson,” Steyer said.

The race for governor features two candidates on opposite ends of the political spectrum. Gillum is an unabashed progressive, while DeSantis is a strict conservative.

Republicans have tried to paint Gillum as a radical who would endanger the achievements made during the past eight years of the Scott administration.

A spokesman for the Republican Governors Association, told the Times that Steyer’s alliance with Gillum provides voters with even more proof of the Democrat’s hard-line political views.

“By embracing California billionaire Tom Steyer and his unpopular obsession with impeachment, Andrew Gillum is once again demonstrating to Florida voters that his radical campaign is too extreme and too out of touch,” said RGA spokesman Jon Thompson.

 

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