ORLANDO, Fla. — The campaign for governor in Florida is all about Ron DeSantis’ record.
His opponent, former Democratic U.S. Rep. Charlie Crist, has slammed the Republican governor and promises to roll back almost everything he’s done.
DeSantis continues to tour the state touting his agenda and the controversial laws he pushed for during his four years in office.
DeSantis has become a celebrated figure among conservatives for his self-described “freedom” from COVID-19 protection measures and his culture war battles. At the same time, progressives have derided him for what they consider his authoritarianism and targeting the rights of minorities and the LGBTQ community.
Most polls have DeSantis comfortably ahead, aided by independent voters who have a relatively favorable view of the governor. Crist has the difficult mission to eat away at that support and win over swing voters by Election Day on Nov. 8.
The candidates offer a clear choice to voters, said Susan MacManus, a professor emerita of political science at the University of South Florida.
“It’s like night and day,” MacManus said. “It reflects the polarization of the country ... which is very frustrating to a lot of voters. But that’s the way it is.”
DeSantis, however, won’t talk about what some see as his next political step: a run for president in 2024. The governor did not answer when Crist asked him at their debate Monday whether he would promise to serve a full, four-year term if he’s reelected.
DeSantis, a former U.S. Navy JAG lawyer and congressman, got a huge boost in 2018 when then-President Donald Trump endorsed him for governor with a tweet. He defeated Democrat Andrew Gillum in that race by just 0.4 percentage points.
After a brief honeymoon period in which he drew bipartisan praise, DeSantis seized on conservative anger over masks, shutdowns, vaccine mandates and other COVID-19 measures recommended by federal health officials to stem the spread of the deadly virus.
Since then, he has not only catered to the GOP base but at some points also led the way in opening new fronts in the culture wars.
That has included COVID vaccine skepticism that has since morphed into overt anti-vaccine messaging, banning "critical race theory" in schools, and targeting transgender students and their parents under the so-called “don’t say gay” law he championed.
Crist, of St. Petersburg, has been a political chameleon over his 30-year career.
A former GOP state senator, education commissioner and attorney general, Crist won the Governor’s Mansion in 2006 and was considered a possible running mate for Republican John McCain before ultimately splitting with his party and making a failed independent bid for U.S. Senate.
As a freshly minted Democrat, he ran for governor and lost in a squeaker to Republican Rick Scott in 2014 but went on to win three terms in Congress. A 25-point win over agriculture commissioner Nikki Fried in the Democratic primary this year propelled him to take on DeSantis.
Crist has been criticized, in some cases by Fried and other Democrats, for views he held while he was a Republican on abortion, crime and Florida Supreme Court appointments.
Hurricane Ian
DeSantis has seized on the governor’s role of overseeing disaster recovery, holding news conferences that demonstrate he is in charge following the devastation caused by Hurricane Ian.
He’s announced quicker-than-expected bridge repairs, an influx of state and federal funds, and the easing of voting restrictions in heavily damaged — and heavily GOP — Southwest Florida.
Even so, Crist has attacked DeSantis over his handling of Ian, claiming officials were slow in getting hardest-hit Lee County to evacuate before the storm, resulting in unnecessary deaths.
“The lapse in leadership was apparent and obvious,” Crist said in a video interview with the Orlando Sentinel and South Florida Sun Sentinel editorial boards. “It’s before the storm hit where true leadership really comes to bear, and it didn’t in this case, and it breaks my heart.”
DeSantis defended his administration and local officials at their sole debate.
“Those folks did a good job,” DeSantis said. “I stand by every one of our local counties. They stood up ... and made the best decisions they could with the information they had.”
Abortion
DeSantis signed a 15-week abortion ban in April, with no exceptions for rape or incest. The law allows abortions after 15 weeks only if two doctors certify a “fatal fetal abnormality.”
In response to that law and the U.S. Supreme Court overturning Roe v. Wade in June, Crist has made abortion rights the centerpiece of his campaign. He launched “The Choice is Choice” tour in Orlando and held a “Statewide Choice Day of Action” on Oct. 11.
Crist has a long and winding record on abortion rights, calling himself “pro-life” in the early 2000s but also vetoing a bill as governor that would have required an ultrasound before an abortion.
This year, Crist pointed to 100% ratings from NARAL Pro-Choice America and Planned Parenthood.
Crist pledged he would sign an executive order “defending the right to access a safe abortion as guaranteed by the Florida Constitution” and that he would veto any “anti-choice” legislation.
He also cited a report about a child incest victim who was denied an abortion in Florida.
“That is not just cruel, that’s barbaric,” Crist said. “Tragically, this is the reality of women’s lack of freedom under Governor Ron DeSantis ... And if he’s reelected, it will only get worse. He will not stop until abortion is banned completely across Florida.”
DeSantis has sidestepped questions on whether he wants Florida to join other GOP-controlled states and institute a six-week or even a total ban on abortion.
Asked at the debate whether he wanted a further ban, DeSantis did not answer, instead telling a story of how the Jamaican mother of his recent state Supreme Court appointee, Renatha Francis, chose not to have an abortion.
“I understand not everyone’s going to be born in perfect circumstances,” he said. “But I would like to see everybody have a shot. I’m proud of the 15 weeks that we did.”
‘Don’t say gay’
In March, DeSantis signed the Parental Rights in Education bill, which its detractors called the “don’t say gay” law.
It prohibits discussion of sexual orientation or gender identity in schools up to the third grade and limits it to “age-appropriate” students in higher grades. Rules issued by the Department of Education state that teachers could potentially lose their jobs if they don’t comply.
DeSantis has defended the law, saying, “The only people that don’t want the parents involved are those that want to use the school system to impose some type of agenda on the students.”
His then-press secretary, Christina Pushaw, called the bill’s opponents “groomers,” a term used to describe sexual predators.
Crist called the bill “another salvo in the culture wars, politicizing our classrooms and censoring Floridians.”
“Our LGBTQ+ youth, friends, family and neighbors have a right to be treated with dignity and respect,” he wrote. “This bill undermines the goal of our state’s classrooms being safe, inclusive learning environments.”
Disney’s Reedy Creek
The controversy over “don’t say gay” eventually spread to Florida’s largest single-site employer, Disney World. Shortly after Disney CEO Bob Chapek belatedly criticized the bill and said it was halting all political donations in the state, DeSantis backed a bill to dissolve the company’s 55-year-old, self-governing Reedy Creek Improvement District.
“I thought it was a mistake for Disney to get involved, and I told them you shouldn’t get involved,” DeSantis said at an event in Orlando in June. “It’s not going to work out well for you.”
Fitch Ratings warned the move could lead to downgrading the bond rating of Florida’s governments if the state doesn’t resolve issues with the district’s $1 billion in outstanding debt, the burden of which could fall on Central Florida governments.
But DeSantis insisted local taxes and services would not be affected, saying “we’re going to take care of all that” but without adding details. It remains unclear what ultimately will happen. Democratic state Sen. Linda Stewart has predicted the district will still exist in some form but with state representation on the board.
“The fact that our governor and our Legislature are trying to pick on them for expressing free speech is astonishing,” Crist said in April. “I think it’s probably unconstitutional, frankly. And I think it’s awful.”
Homeowners insurance
DeSantis called a special session of the Legislature in May to tackle the state’s soaring homeowners insurance rates.
DeSantis ultimately signed a bill adding an extra $2 billion in reimbursements for reinsurance due to hurricane losses, restrictions on soliciting homeowners to make property insurance claims and preventing insurers from denying coverage to homes with roofs less than 15 years old.
But the session didn’t provide any immediate relief for policyholders from skyrocketing premiums and canceled policies, with Republicans calling the provisions a “first step” while Democrats called them “milquetoast.”
With billions of dollars in damage from Hurricane Ian, the insurance crisis has only gotten bigger. DeSantis has said he wants to call another special session on the issue before the end of the year, a decision that Crist mocked at the debate. “I don’t think the third time is going to be the charm,” he said.
Crist has cited his experience as governor when he called a special session in 2007 that stabilized the insurance market and lowered rates by 10%.
According to his campaign website, he would appoint an insurance commissioner to “hold the line on rate increases,” require insurers who sell auto insurance to also provide homeowners insurance, and reintroduce his My Safe Florida Homes program to provide free wind inspections.
Election changes
In 2021 and 2022, DeSantis pushed for and signed changes to Florida’s election laws despite praising the state’s performance in the 2020 election.
The laws sharply curbed the use of drop boxes, which had been vilified by former President Trump as part of his false claims of voter fraud. The governor also added further restrictions on voting by mail, including limiting the number that could be dropped off by a third party.
It made it harder for outside groups to register voters outside of their home county and created an elections police force that recently made headlines for charging former felons for voting.
Crist said he would reverse the new mail-in ballot restrictions, automatically register anyone getting a driver’s license, and make Election Day a state holiday.
He also wants to make it easier to restore voting rights for felons, which was approved by voters in 2018 but restricted to those paying all fines, fees and restitution in a bill signed by DeSantis.
COVID-19 pandemic
One issue that hasn’t been at the forefront of the campaign dominated much of the news for nearly three years: COVID-19.
DeSantis has largely avoided talking about the more than 82,000 deaths in Florida attributed to the pandemic.
At the debate, Crist said 40,000 of those deaths could have been prevented if DeSantis had followed the science and supported basic safety restrictions such as vaccination, masks and social distancing, all short of total lockdowns.
But the governor said he would not change anything about his policies.
“That’s the approach (other states) should have taken: focus on the vulnerable population, but make sure you’re not locking down the rest of the people,” DeSantis said. “We’ve thrived as a result.”
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