A poll of registered Florida voters from Quinnipiac University released on Thursday morning finds former Gov. Charlie Crist leading Gov. Rick Scott 46 percent to 38 percent. Crist is the favorite for the Democratic nomination despite spending most of his political career as a Republican.

Republican congressional hopeful David Jolly came out swinging against President Barack Obamas health care law on Tuesday, backing U.S. Sen. Marco Rubios, R-Fla., proposal to ensure taxpayer dollars are not used to bail out insurance companies due to the impact of the law. Jolly is running against Democratic nominee former state CFO Alex Sink and Libertarian Lucas Overby in the March 11 special election.

Dr. Ben Carson, who is being touted as a possible candidate for the Republican presidential nomination in 2016, took a large step to becoming more politically active on Tuesday when he was named chairman of American Legacy PACs Save Our Healthcare" campaign. Carson burst on to the political scene by offering sharp criticism of President Barack Obamas federal health-care law at the National Prayer Breakfast.

On Tuesday, Gov. Rick Scott called for $80 million to go to cancer research as part of his proposed budget. The bulk of those funds -- $60 million -- would go to Florida Cancer Centers while another $20 million would go to grants.

U.S. Rep. Ander Crenshaw, R-Fla., weighed in on Tuesday afternoon on what he hopes to see from President Barack Obamas State of the Union address that night.

The Florida Retail Federation (FRF) cheered news that retail jobs grew 5.5 percent in Florida last year, adding 55,000 new jobs to the Sunshine State.

Gov. Rick Scott held a media event in Orlando on Tuesday, calling for reducing the business rental sales tax by 0.5 percent as part of his proposed budget.

U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., insisted on Tuesday that his proposal to ensure federal funds will not be used to bail out insurance companies in the aftermath of President Barack Obamas federal health-care law has support.

Over the weekend, former Florida House Majority Leader Adam Hasner announced he would not challenge U.S. Rep. Patrick Murphy, D-Fla. With Hasner staying out, the Republicans already in the race are ramping up their efforts to defeat Murphy. Case in point: former state Rep. Carl Domino who went all out in attacking Murphy on Tuesday bashing him on a host of fronts.

With President Barack Obama offering the State of the Union address on Tuesday night, the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) is looking to tie his agenda to former state CFO Alex Sink who is running in a special election for the congressional seat left open by the death of longtime U.S. Rep. Bill Young, R-Fla.