Democrats Take First Shot At Gov. Scott's Re-election Bid
TALLAHASSEE (CBSMiami/AP) — In some of its first paid ads of the 2014 campaign cycle, the Florida Democratic Party announced Thursday that it would take to social media and online news sites to whack away at Gov. Rick Scott, even though the party doesn't have a well-known, well-funded candidate to face him.
The party has begun placing ads on newspaper and social media websites. It also created a website, www.realrickscott.com, to criticize Scott's record as governor.
The campaign comes as Democrats wait for a strong candidate to emerge against Scott. The only credible candidate in the race right now is former state Sen. Nan Rich, who has struggled to raise the money needed for a successful statewide campaign.
Former Republican Gov. Charlie Crist is widely expected to enter the race. Crist became a Democrat last year.
The latest survey from the Quinnipiac University Polling Institute, taken last month, still showed Scott losing by double digits to Crist or U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson.
But that poll also showed Scott with a 43 percent job approval rating compared to a 44 percent disapproval rating, some of the best marks of his tenure, and some observers predict that the Scott campaign and related groups will spend as much as $100 million on the re-election effort.
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