Sunburn – The Morning Read Of What’s Hot In Florida Politics – 9.8.22

 Good Wednesday morning.

Another major pollster is projecting tight races for Governor and U.S. Senate.

New data from Susquehanna Polling and Research shows Gov. Ron DeSantis leading at 47% with U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist pulling in 43%. Meanwhile, U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio is leading U.S. Rep. Val Demings by three points, 47%-43%.

Both races fall within the margin of error, which stands at 4.3 percentage points.

The numbers paint a similar picture to that of a poll conducted by Fabrizio Ward on behalf of AARP-Florida. That measure showed DeSantis ahead of Crist 50%-47% and Rubio leading Demings 49%-47%.

In addition to the toplines, the polls also line up on candidate favorability — DeSantis and Demings are both viewed favorably by voters — albeit with Demings holding a lower name-ID than the other statewide candidates — while Crist and Rubio are both underwater.

Issue questions also jibed between the polls, with economic issues on the top rung with social issues such as abortion rights and gun control close behind. A distant third place issue was immigration followed by the environment, taxes, public safety and health care.

Susquehanna Polling and Research surveyed 500 likely General Election voters between Aug. 29 and Sept. 3, making this the most recently taken poll now publicly available on the race.

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First in Sunburn — Ban Assault Weapons NOW (BAWN) is endorsing Crist for Governor, warning that if DeSantis is re-elected, “gun violence will soar.”

BAWN’s endorsement announcement cited Crist’s “impeccable” voting record on gun safety legislation during his time in Congress, which the group said proves he is “the champion our children and families need in Tallahassee to fight for us.”

“I’m proud to earn the support of BAWN in our mission to fight for Florida and work to put an end to the gun violence epidemic destroying our communities,” Crist said. “Enough is enough. How many more innocent children and families need to die before we take real action to keep Floridians safe? I vow to be a fighter for common sense gun reform and a champion for safer communities.”

BAWN also said DeSantis “has done nothing” to prevent gun violence or the proliferation of assault weapons, and that the gun legislation he has proposed would likely increase the number of gun-related deaths in the state.

“In addition to saying he would have vetoed the bipartisan common sense reforms passed after the Parkland massacre, Ron DeSantis has vowed to pass a permitless and untrained carry bill — allowing Floridians to carry a loaded gun in public with no permit, no safety training and no background check,” said Gail Schwartz, the founder of BAWN and the aunt of Parkland shooting victim Alex Schachter.

“At a time when Florida has experienced an average of 2,849 gun deaths annually, this will unquestionably cause more bloodshed and heartache in our communities.”

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— When’s the last time you’ve watched a local government meeting without hearing the smack of a gavel? It’s probably been a while. As Jacob Gershman writes for The Wall Street Journal, recent years have seen gavel banging become an “emblem of civic disorder” in city, county and school board meetings.

— SITUATIONAL AWARENESS —

—@POTUS: Those who love this country must be more committed to saving our democracy than the MAGA agenda is to destroying it.

Tweet, tweet:

Barack and Michelle helped lift the American people’s burden of fear with the blessing of hope.

That’s the gift of the Obama presidency to history. And it’s a gift I felt personally. It was my honor to unveil their White House portraits today. pic.twitter.com/YFTa5RPFx1

— President Biden (@POTUS) September 7, 2022

—@EugeneDaniels2: Something that will mean A LOT to Black people across the country: Former First Lady Michelle Obama wearing braids at the unveiling of her official White House portrait.

—@BryanDGriffin: “We’ve been blessed in Florida; our revenues are strong, so we need to return some of that revenue to the taxpayers.” — @GovRonDeSantis at today’s toll savings proposal. These are the words of good governance.

—@NikkiFried: Ron DeSantis literally arrested people for his own agency’s failure to follow the law.

—@MacyHarperFla: So, let me get this straight … California just banned gas vehicles by 2035, but yesterday they told their residents they can only charge their cars after 9 p.m. to save power …

—@NateMonroeBlvd: The re-routed Gator Bowl Blvd feels like something drawn up on the back of a napkin. Nonsensical. Dangerous. Inefficient. FDOT should be ashamed for fast-tracking this project, and a federal inspector general should scrutinize how it got funded. What a joke. We tore an elevated ramp down and rebuilt part of it. For a developer, who may or may not build something. This town.

Sunburn is authored and assembled by Peter Schorsch, Phil Ammann, Daniel Dean, Renzo Downey, Jacob Ogles, and Drew Wilson.

The post Sunburn — The morning read of what’s hot in Florida politics — 9.8.22 appeared first on Florida Politics – Campaigns & Elections. Lobbying & Government..