On Tuesday, Americans went to the polls and voted to give Republicans control of the U.S. Senate. Although many of the races were very close, it was clear toward the end that Republicans had earned a decisive victory at the national level.
In Florida, the voting results were largely a mixed bag. In some cases, voters made thoughtful, critical decisions about the future of our state. However, on the most important issues, voters chose to send the Sunshine State down a dark path.
Florida voters made the correct choice on Amendments 1 and 3. The former ensures a permanent source of funding for environmental conservation that will not be subject to the whims of the Legislature or the governor. By rejecting the latter, voters prevented a needless change that would have given lame-duck governors more power over the state’s judicial system.
However, voters’ rejection of Amendment 2, which would have legalized medical marijuana in the Sunshine State, is deeply unfortunate. The amendment was narrowly tailored to minimize abuse and ensured that those truly in need of medical relief would receive aid. Unfortunately, the makeup of the Florida Legislature suggests that medical marijuana legalization will not happen in the near future.
The most significant — and likely most harmful — decision Florida voters made Tuesday was to re-elect incumbent Republican Gov. Rick Scott. Despite Scott’s ghastly approval rating — which Public Policy Polling recently found to be at 39 percent — he was still able to pull out a razor-thin victory over Democratic challenger Charlie Crist.
Democrats can largely blame themselves for their loss in the governor’s race. Scott was one of the most unpopular politicians in the country and ripe for defeat. Rather than nominating a dynamic candidate, Democrats settled on a familiar but fairly uninspiring nominee in Crist, a Republican-turned-Independent-turned-Democrat.
Crist struggled to reconcile his previous political affiliations with his new, more liberal positions. In the end, the governor’s race became a choice between a flip-flopper and an incumbent with a disastrous track record. In the end, Florida voters chose the latter.
Although neither candidate in the governor’s race was an ideal choice, there is little doubt that Crist would have been a stronger choice for Florida’s economy, environment and education system. With Scott’s re-election, the outlook on these critical issues is more dire than ever before.
By re-electing Scott, Florida voters have decided the state’s future over the next four years: a low-functioning public school system, more sharp cuts to environmental and infrastructure spending and limited job growth in mostly low-wage sectors.
With large, supportive majorities in the Republican Legislature, Scott is poised to enact his agenda with little resistance. If Scott’s first term is any indication, Florida voters may experience buyer’s remorse in the very near future.
[A version of this story ran on page 6 on 11/5/2014
