2014 Florida gubernatorial election


The 2014 Florida gubernatorial election took place on November 4, 2014, to elect the Governor and Governor of Florida">List of Governors of Florida">Governor of Florida.
The incumbent Republican, Rick Scott, ran for reelection. The Democratic Party|Democratic] nominee was former governor Charlie Crist, who was Scott's direct predecessor. Crist was elected governor as a Republican in 2006 but did not run for re-election in 2010, instead opting to run for Senate as an independent. Libertarian nominee Adrian Wyllie and several candidates with no party affiliation also ran. Political pundits considered the race a toss-up. This was one of nine Republican-held governorships up for election in a state that Barack Obama won in the 2012 presidential election.
On Election Day, Scott defeated Crist, earning 48% of the vote. With a margin of 1%, this election was the closest race of the 2014 gubernatorial election cycle.

Republican primary

Candidates

Declared

  • Yinka Adeshina, pharmacist
  • Elizabeth Cuevas-Neunder, conservative activist and candidate for governor in 1998
  • Rick Scott, incumbent governor

Withdrew

  • Timothy Devine

Declined

Polling

Poll sourceDate
administered		Sample
size		Margin of
error		Rick
Scott		Pam
Bondi		OtherUndecided
Hamilton StrategiesJanuary 30 – February 4, 2013?± ?54%21%—25%
Public Policy PollingMarch 15–18, 2013326± 5.4%46%27%—27%
Public Policy PollingJanuary 11–13, 2013436± 4.7%49%25%—26%

Poll sourceDate
administered		Sample
size		Margin of
error		Rick
Scott		Adam
Putnam		OtherUndecided
Public Policy PollingMarch 15–18, 2013326± 5.4%48%24%—28%
QuinnipiacMarch 13–18, 2013353± 5.2%47%24%2%27%

Poll sourceDate
administered		Sample
size		Margin of
error		Rick
Scott		Tim
Tebow		OtherUndecided
Public Policy PollingJanuary 14–16, 2012572± 4.1%47%26%—27%

Poll sourceDate
administered		Sample
size		Margin of
error		Rick
Scott		Allen
West		OtherUndecided
Public Policy PollingJanuary 11–13, 2013436± 4.7%37%38%—25%

Poll sourceDate
administered		Sample
size		Margin of
error		Rick
Scott		Ted
Yoho		OtherUndecided
Public Policy PollingMarch 15–18, 2013326± 5.4%54%13%—32%

Democratic primary

In April 2010 and while still in office as Governor of Florida, Charlie Crist left the Republican Party to run for U.S. Senate as an Independent. He was defeated in the general election by Republican nominee Marco Rubio. In December 2012, Crist joined the Democratic Party.

Candidates

Declared

Withdrew

Declined

Libertarian Party

Candidates

Declared

Withdrew

Declined

Independent candidates

Candidates

Declared

Withdrawn

Disqualified

  • Joe Allen, writer

Write-in candidates

  • Piotr Blass
  • Timothy Michael Devine
  • Emelia Sandra Harris
  • Monroe Lee
  • Caleb Pringle
  • Charles Frederick Tolbert

General election

Candidates

The following candidates appeared on the ballot for the general election:

Campaign

As of early June 2014, Scott had spent almost $13m since March on television advertisements attacking Charlie Crist, who then appeared the likely Democratic nominee. Although the ads resulted in a tightening of the race, this came about by decreasing Crist's favorability ratings. By contrast, Scott's favorability ratings did not increase. By late September, Scott's television ad spending had exceeded $35m and in mid-October it reached $56.5 million, compared to $26.5 million by Crist. On October 22 it was reported that Scott's total spending had exceeded $83 million and he announced that, having previously said he would not do so, he would be investing his own money into the campaign, speculated to be as much as $22 million.
Crist hoped to draw strong support from Florida's more than 1.6 million registered black voters, an effort that was challenging with regards to his previous political career as a Republican. A poll conducted in September 2014 by Quinnipiac University revealed his support among black voters was at 72 percent against Scott, which was below the 90 percent analysts believed he needed to win.
Scott and Crist met in a debate on October 15, held by the Florida Press Association at Broward College. The debate required candidates to receive at least 15% support in major polls to be included. This was allegedly increased from 10% after Wyllie met the initial criteria, but the Miami Herald reported that the threshold had been 15% since 2013. The decision has been criticized as "suppressing choice" and the Wyllie campaign has filed a lawsuit to be included in the debate. U.S. District Judge James I. Cohn dismissed the lawsuit. At this debate, Scott refused to take the stage for seven minutes because Crist had a small electric fan under his lectern. The incident was dubbed "fangate" by media sources such as Politico.

Polling

With Scott

Poll sourceDate
administered		Sample
size		Margin of
error		Rick
Scott 		Buddy
Dyer 		OtherUndecided
Public Policy PollingJanuary 11–13, 2013501± 4.4%41%37%—23%

Poll sourceDate
administered		Sample
size		Margin of
error		Rick
Scott 		Pam
Iorio 		OtherUndecided
Public Policy PollingMarch 15–18, 201350± 5.4%37%44%—19%
Public Policy PollingJanuary 11–13, 2013501± 4.4%39%43%—19%

Poll sourceDate
administered		Sample
size		Margin of
error		Rick
Scott 		Bill
Nelson 		OtherUndecided
University of FloridaJanuary 27–February 1, 20141,006± 3%42%46%—12%
Fabrizio McLaughlinNovember 24–26, 20131,000± 3.1%46%48%—6%
Quinnipiac UniversityJune 11–16, 20131,176± 2.9%38%48%1%13%

Poll sourceDate
administered		Sample
size		Margin of
error		Rick
Scott 		Nan
Rich 		OtherUndecided
Quinnipiac UniversityJuly 17–21, 20141,251± 2.8%41%34%4%21%
Public Policy PollingJune 6–9, 2014672± 3.8%40%34%—25%
Saint Leo UniversityMay 28–June 4, 2014500± 5%44%31%—25%
Quinnipiac UniversityApril 23–28, 20141,413± 2.6%42%36%3%19%
Saint Leo UniversityMarch 16–19, 2014500± 5%40%32%—28%
University of FloridaJanuary 27–February 1, 20141,006± 3%41%36%—23%
Quinnipiac UniversityJanuary 22–27, 20141,565± 2.5%41%37%—22%
Public Policy PollingJanuary 16–21, 2014591± 4%40%34%—25%
Saint Leo UniversityDecember 1–8, 2013400± 5%36%31%—32%
Quinnipiac UniversityNovember 12–17, 20131,646± 2.4%43%35%3%19%
University of North FloridaSeptember 30–October 8, 2013526± 4.27%43%28%2%27%
Public Policy PollingSeptember 27–29, 2013579± 4.1%37%36%—27%
Quinnipiac UniversityJune 11–16, 20131,176± 2.9%42%36%3%20%
Public Policy PollingMarch 15–18, 2013500± 5.4%42%36%—21%
Public Policy PollingJanuary 11–13, 2013501± 4.4%41%37%—22%
Public Policy PollingMay 31–June 3, 2012642± 3.9%35%47%—18%

Poll sourceDate
administered		Sample
size		Margin of
error		Rick
Scott 		Alex
Sink 		OtherUndecided
Public Policy PollingMarch 15–18, 2013501± 4.4%40%45%—15%
Quinnipiac UniversityMarch 13–18, 20131,000± 3.1%34%45%1%20%
Public Policy PollingJanuary 11–13, 2013501± 4.4%40%47%—14%
Public Policy PollingNovember 28–December 1, 2011700± 3.7%37%53%—10%
Public Policy PollingSeptember 22–25, 2011476± 4.5%41%52%—7%
Public Policy PollingJune 16–19, 2011848± 3.4%35%57%—8%

Poll sourceDate
administered		Sample
size		Margin of
error		Rick
Scott 		Debbie
Wasserman Schultz 		OtherUndecided
Public Policy PollingJanuary 11–13, 2013501± 4.4%42%44%—14%

With Putnam

Poll sourceDate
administered		Sample
size		Margin of
error		Adam
Putnam 		Charlie
Crist 		OtherUndecided
Quinnipiac UniversityMarch 13–18, 20131,000± 3.1%30%49%1%20%

Poll sourceDate
administered		Sample
size		Margin of
error		Adam
Putnam 		Alex
Sink 		OtherUndecided
Quinnipiac UniversityMarch 13–18, 20131,000± 3.1%29%37%2%33%

Results

Scott defeated Crist by a slim margin garnering 48% percent of the vote to the former's 47%. With the loss, Crist became the first candidate in Florida history to lose statewide elections as a Democrat, as a Republican, and as an Independent.

Counties that flipped from Democratic to Republican

Counties that flipped from Republican to Democratic

By congressional district

Scott won 16 of 27 congressional districts, including two held by Democrats, with the remaining 11 going to Crist, including three held by Republicans.
DistrictScottCristRepresentative
69.66%25.95%Jeff Miller
49.72%46.37%Gwen Graham
59.07%36.22%Ted Yoho
64.31%31.09%Ander Crenshaw
31.34%64.67%Corrine Brown
56.32%38.5%Ron DeSantis
49.82%44.13%John Mica
53.74%40.18%Bill Posey
41.63%53.17%Alan Grayson
51.72%42.61%Daniel Webster
55.91%37.98%Rich Nugent
48.36%44.32%Gus Bilirakis
42.59%50.3%Bill Young
34.28%60.5%Kathy Castor
51.13%41.83%Dennis Ross
49.94%43.95%Vern Buchanan
54.82%38.43%Tom Rooney
47.89%47.87%Patrick Murphy
60.88%35.48%Trey Radel
16.48%81.48%Alcee Hastings
34.69%62.58%Ted Deutch
41.31%55.72%Lois Frankel
34.55%62.74%Debbie Wasserman Schultz
12.29%86.21%Frederica Wilson
55.7%41.67%Mario Díaz-Balart
46.41%50.74%Carlos Curbelo
47.99%49.54%Ileana Ros-Lehtinen