It wasnt too long ago that Gov. Rick Scott called Mike Fasano to be Pasco County tax collector, leaving a House District seat up for grabs in a special election set for next month. Republican Bill Gunter and Democrat Amanda Murphy emerged victorious from the primary race, but since then things have taken an interesting turn in Pasco County.
After Gunter and Murphy clinched their respective primary victories, Fasano had warm words of congratulations for the two contenders for his old seat. But Fasano specifically asked Gunter and Murphy to keep his name out of their mailers and advertisements in their campaigns.
Yet that hasnt stopped Fasano, who has a long history of serving in both the House and the Senate of the Florida Legislature, from putting his 2 cents in about his feelings on the race.
Fasano said early on that he expected to stay neutral in the race, but two weeks away from the special election, things seem to have changed. His Twitter account now shows him leaning toward supporting Amanda Murphy, and he isnt keeping quiet about his distaste for pastor Bill Gunter.
The Pasco County tax collector addressed Gunter directly in a tweet on Sept. 27:
Gunter stop negative campaigning, start talking about the issues, read the tweet. "What are your solutions to Pasco's uninsured and repeal nuke tax?
On Sept. 22, he slammed Gunter for his attacks on Murphy with Tallahassee money.
The tweet read:
@ElectBillGunter can't run on his own merits. Instead attacks opponent using Tallahassee money. Be very careful GOP House Campaigns#sayfie
Judging from Fasanos tweets, its clear hes not on track to endorse Gunter anytime soon. Instead, it appears that Fasano has been leaning more toward supporting Murphy rather than sticking with a fellow Republican.
Fasanos gripes with Gunter eerily echo Florida Democratic Party Chairwoman Allison Tants comments on Gunter.
"Bill Gunter is the textbook example of a politician who's bought and paid for by the wealthy Tallahassee interests," said Florida Democratic Party Chairwoman Allison Tant. "Only a paltry 5 percent of Bill Gunter's campaign cash came from Pasco County, and he has raised more money from outside the state of Florida than he has from people in the district he is trying to represent.
Fasanos support -- albeit not outright -- for Murphy could be critical for the Oct. 15 election. Gunters snagged the endorsements of several high-profile politicians -- including former Gov. Jeb Bush -- but with a vocal Mike Fasano chopping Gunter down at every chance he gets, does the Republican candidate for HD 36 stand a chance?
Absentee ballots returned Monday showed voters nearly split. Over 1,900 Republicans and 1,877 Democrats returned their ballots, while 749 other party members returned their ballots. That means it is plausible that independents could decide the winner in the special election, making every endorsement -- especially Fasano's -- critical to the special election.
Reach Tampa-based reporter Allison Nielsen at Allison@sunshinestatenews.com or follow her on Twitter @ Allison Nielsen.
