2017 may have just begun, but Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum is already thinking ahead to his 2018 gubernatorial bid. Gallium has gone from ‘seriously considering’ running for governor to a planned official announcement, all within a week’s time.
Florida Politics first reported Gillum told his supporters in New York he would be running for governor Tuesday. An official announcement will be made Wednesday.
It was just a few days ago Gillum teased the possibility of a run for the state’s highest office. The 37 year-old mayor will join a possibly crowded field of contenders for the job and try to help the Democratic Party nab a seat at the governor’s mansion for the first time in nearly 20 years.
“This is an improbable journey but a wholly possible one,” Gillum told his supporters. “There is a moment here for clear and authentic voices to break through.”
Gillum said he believed he could the voice of Floridians with
“It’s important to get out there and tell our story,” he said. “I am jazzed up.”
Gillum said his excitement could be from not knowing entirely what to expect in a gubernatorial run.
“It might be naiveté about what is around the bend,” he said.
Gillum has a storied history in local politics. At 23, he became the youngest person to serve on the Tallahassee City Commission and worked in the community to build local youth restorative justice programs. He became mayor of the state’s capital city in 2014.
If elected, Gillum would become one of the youngest governors in the state’s history. He faces a potentially crowded field of contenders for the job, including former U.S. Rep. Gwen Graham, Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine, uber lawyer John Morgan, Tampa mayor Bob Buckhorn and conservationist and alligator wrestler Ron Bergeron.
Gillum’s time in Tallahassee has not been met without criticism. Last October, the city came under fire over massive power outages following Hurricane Hermine, when some say he turned down outside help to get the lights back on in the state’s capital city.
Gillum denied refusing help.
“The city of Tallahassee, and everyone that I have spoken to says that folks have not been, help has not been refused," he said. "What has happened, the city, in it’s recovery effort has to phase in the kinds of support that we’re able to absorb at any point in time."
Reaching out to a statewide audience could prove to be a challenge for Gillum, whose location puts him in a tight spot geographically since most of the Democratic base is located in South Florida.
Gillum said he planned on traveling to places where they “haven’t seen Democratic candidates for Governor,” but did not offer specifics as to where that might be.
Other possible candidates have already begun fielding calls and seriously looking at how to reach out to voters well before the campaign even begins.
Looking ahead, Gillum said he believed it was important to get out his message to Floridians ready to hear it.
“These folks will try to paint me as something I won’t recognize myself,” Gillum said. “But I think it’s going to be a real important to get out there and tell our own story.”
Reach reporter Allison Nielsen by email at allison@sunshinestatenews.com or follow her on Twitter: @AllisonNielsen.
