Democrat Leaders Backing Gwen Graham to Challenge Steve Southerland Over Al Lawson

Al Lawson might have led Democrats in the Florida Senate but the party establishment is showing signs of supporting Gwen Graham over him to take on Republican U.S. Rep. Steve Southerland in 2014.

This week, Graham, the daughter of Bob Graham who served as governor and represented Florida in the U.S. Senate, showcased two prominent Florida Democrats as she gears up to run against Southerland. Graham featured a photo with freshman U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy earlier in the week. Great to have the support of Rep. Patrick Murphy, Graham posted on her Facebook page. He understands that bipartisanship is key to making Congress work again."

On Thursday, Graham featured a photo with another prominent Democrat -- former Gov. Charlie Crist. Last night I was proud to stand next to Governor Charlie Crist as he endorsed my campaign for Congress," Graham noted. She failed to mention that Crist ran against her father in a U.S. Senate race as a Republican. After years running for office as a Republican, Crist abandoned the GOP to run for the Senate in 2010 with no party affiliation. He jumped over to the Democrats in December.

Lawson has run for Congress twice. He gave incumbent U.S. Rep. Allen Boyd a scare in the 2010 Democratic primaries before winning the nomination in 2012. Southerland held on to beat Lawson in November. For the moment, it appears Lawson will have to take on much of the Democratic leadership if he wants to run a third time. Lawson has hinted he will run again and there could be an announcement in the weeks to come.