While most eyes are on the battle for the Republican presidential nomination and the upcoming session of the Florida Legislature which opens next week, the team behind U.S. Rep. Connie Mack, who is running for the Republican nomination to challenge Democrat incumbent U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson in 2012, continues to plan ahead for their campaign.
Jeff Cohen, Macks campaign manager, sent out a memo on Thursday to key supporters arguing that his candidate had great momentum in the race.
Every public poll that has been released has Connie with a significant lead in the Republican primary, Cohen argued. The latest poll, by TelOpinion Research, shows him with a massive lead. Moreover, that poll and others show other candidates continuing to collapse.
Cohen pointed out where former state House Majority Leader Adam Hasner stood in the poll, noting that one of our opponents is now stuck at between 1 and 2 percent despite having been on the stump around the state for well over a year.
Insisting his candidate was in solid shape to win the Republican nomination, Cohen noted that Mack had won the backing of key GOP leaders including U.S. Rep. Jeff Miller and U.S. Rep. Ileana Ros-Lehtinen as well as state Senate President Mike Haridopolos of Merritt Island and Sen. John Thrasher of Jacksonville. Cohen unveiled a new supporter of Mack as well -- U.S. Rep. Vern Buchanan, the only member of the House Ways and Means Committee from the Sunshine State. Buchanan had considered entering the Senate race and Haridopolos, who had Macks support, pulled out of the race in 2011.
Cohen argued that Mack was in a good position to take on Nelson come November.
Publicly released general election poll results are also very encouraging, Cohen wrote. One poll shows Connie ahead of Senator Bill Nelson. When looking at data compiled by Real Clear Politics, Senator Nelson is only ahead of Connie by a few percentage points -- a very dangerous place for a two-term Senate incumbent. Meanwhile, the RCP average of Senator Nelson versus every other candidate shows his lead against them in double digits.
In short, the polling data strongly suggest that Connie is the most well-positioned candidate to win the Republican nomination and to beat liberal Senator Bill Nelson in November, Cohen added.
With Mack entering the race in late November after first passing on the chance to run for the Senate seat that his father held for 12 years, Cohen also claimed a bit of fundraising success.
With Connies very late entry into the Senate race and the challenges of the holiday season, we planned our fundraising goals conservatively for the fourth quarter, with a stretch goal of raising $500,000, Cohen maintained. While the campaign will be tallying our fundraising results for the next several days, I am pleased to report that it appears we will achieve, if not exceed, that goal.
Cohen promised that more endorsements would be coming up in the weeks to come, but insisted that the Mack campaign would stay out of the limelight until Florida Republicans have their say on who will challenge President Barack Obama in 2012.
Once the presidential primary election in Florida is over on Jan. 31, our campaign will begin in earnest, Cohen insisted.
Mack is not the only candidate working to build his campaign in the shadow of the presidential race.
Hasners team sent out three fundraising emails last week in which the former Florida legislator slammed Nelson and his rivals for the Republican nomination.
Bill Nelson is backed by the same ultraliberal fundraising machine that has fueled the campaigns of Barack Obama and Harry Reid, and the same Washington insiders who give big bucks to whoever is in power, Hasner wrote in one email.
My opponents in the Republican primary and Senator Bill Nelson all have powerful allies in Washington who will give them access to unlimited cash to protect their interests, Hasner wrote in another. We may not be able to out-raise them, but we will outwork them, and build a grassroots movement that will lead us to victory next year.
Former U.S. Sen. George LeMieux, who is also gunning for the Republican nomination, released a Web video last week as he attempted to raise funds in the last days of 2011.
We are gaining support every day in our effort to retire Bill Nelson and end Harry Reid's reign as majority leader, LeMieux wrote, as he attempted to raise $15,000 online in the last week of 2011.
Restaurant executive Craig Miller will be hosting a fundraiser on Tuesday night at his home in Winter Haven where he and supporters will watch the New Hampshire presidential primaries come in.
Making his year-end fundraising pitch, Miller, the former CEO of Ruths Chris Steakhouse and Uno Restaurants, played up his record in the private sector.
The new year is our chance to elect a new leader for our nation, and a new United States senator for the great state of Florida, Miller wrote in an email to supporters sent out last week. I am running for U.S. Senate because I am the only candidate who can defeat Bill Nelson. I am a businessman. I have managed a payroll. I will work to grow the economy and create jobs without government intervention. I understand the challenges we Americans are facing each day.
Beating Bill Nelson will be challenging, Miller added. He is building a campaign war chest -- funded by his lobbyist friends in Washington.
Retired Army officer and businessman Mike McCalister, who took more than 10 percent in the 2010 Republican gubernatorial primary, also claimed momentum as 2011 ended.
I will work hard in the coming months to defeat Bill Nelson, and with your continued support we will send a clear message to Washington, D.C., McCalister wrote supporters last week. Our campaign is ready to move forward into 2012, strong and determined.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or at (850) 727-0859.
