In the final days of the special election for the congressional seat left open by the death of longtime U.S. Rep. Bill Young, R-Fla., candidates are making their final outreach bids and launching their last attacks.
The Republican leadership controlling the U.S. House ramped up their support behind David Jolly, the Republican candidate in the special congressional election in Pinellas County. Jolly takes on Democrat former state CFO Alex Sink and Libertarian Lucas Overby in Tuesdays election.
U.S. House Speaker John Boehner, R-Ohio, threw his weight behind Jolly on Friday when he sent out a fundraising email to his supporters, encouraging them to back Jolly in this highly contested and neck and neck race. Most of Boehners focus was against Sink, looking to tie her to President Barack Obama and U.S. House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif.
A Republican win next week against Barack Obamas and Nancy Pelosis hand-picked candidate will help our team build momentum here in 2014, Boehner insisted. Dont let the Left steal this election in its final days. This is anyones race.
Boehner also praised Jolly. David Jolly will be a welcome addition to our team thats fighting for lower taxes, more jobs, and balanced budgets, Boehner maintained.
Other prominent Republican congressmen are also going to bat for Jolly in the final days of the campaign. U.S. Rep. Paul Ryan, R-Wis., best known for being Mitt Romneys running mate in 2012, held a conference call in support of Jolly on Thursday while U.S. Rep. Jeff Miller, R-Fla., the chairman of the House Veterans Affairs Committee, held an event focus on veterans with the candidate on Friday.
But Sink has big-name Democrats trumpeting their support of her candidacy. After recording a robocall that ran in the district earlier in the week, former President Bill Clinton sent out an email under his name encouraging Democrats to rally behind her.
The stakes couldnt be higher in this Florida special election, Clinton wrote. Im supporting Alex because shes a proven leader who will work to solve problems and expand opportunities, and I urge you to support her too.
Like Boehner, Clinton painted the race as a close contest. Ive followed this race pretty closely. And everything indicates its a dead-heat, Clinton insisted. The last thing we want is to wake up the day after regretting that we didnt do more to help Alex win.
In the meantime, at the state and national levels, party leaders exchanged fire with the National Republican Congressional Committee (NRCC) hitting Sink for supporting President Barack Obamas health-care law while the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) hit Jollys lobbying background and positions on the budget.
Alex Sink has promoted Obamacare every step of this campaign and yet she still wont acknowledge that folks right here in Pinellas do not support this dysfunctional law, said Katie Prill, a spokeswoman for the NRCC, on Friday. Now that Pinellas families know they dont like the law, Sink is even more determined than ever to protect Obamacare.
David Bergstein, a spokesman for the DCCC, hit Jolly for campaigning with Ryan.
The fact that lobbyist David Jolly would flaunt an endorsement from Congressman Paul Ryan who would end the Medicare guarantee for seniors shows just how out of touch lobbyist Jolly is with Pinellas values, said Bergstein on Thursday. Jolly has already lobbied Ryan on behalf of a radical special interest who supports privatizing Social Security forcing seniors to gamble their retirement in the stock market and Jolly even praised Ryans budget that turns Medicare into a costly voucher program. Tonight was just the latest sign that Pinellas residents simply cannot trust lobbyist David Jolly.
In the meantime, state and national party officials tried to get their voters out on Friday. Scott Arceneaux of the Florida Democratic Party encouraged supporters to stop people like the Koch Bros. from buying elections for their candidates by backing Sink. Reince Preibus from the Republican National Committee (RNC) took to social media, beating the drums for Jolly.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com.
