Jack Latvala Likely on Short List for Jennifer Carroll's Open LG Spot

Veteran lawmaker Sen. Jack Latvala, R-Clearwater, is likely to be atop the short list of candidates to replace Jennifer Carroll as lieutenant governor.Sources close to Gov. Rick Scott confirm that Latvalas record as a moderate who frequently crosses the aisle to block hard-line conservative legislation would help move Scott to the center in his quest to draw more independent and Democratic voters for his re-election bid.

Medicaid expansion, pay raises for teachers, big budgets and now Jack Latvala could be the magic recipe for moderation that Scott strategists desperately seek.

Geography also makes a Latvala pick alluring, as he could cut into the former Gov. Charlie Crist's Pinellas County base, should the Republican-turned independent-turned Democrat decide to take another shot at the governor's mansion.