In the aftermath of the Florida presidential primary earlier this week, two potential gubernatorial candidates closed the door to running in 2018.
Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi, who endorsed businessman Donald Trump for president at an event in Tampa on Monday, before big win in Tuesday’s primary, appeared on “Your World”on Fox News. In that appearance, Bondi said she was not running for governor.
"I will say on the record, I am not running for governor,” Bondi said before throwing her support to a fellow member of the Florida Cabinet. “I am supporting Adam Putnam who I feel, he is our agricultural commissioner, and I think he’ll be a great governor for our state."
Bondi has been prominent at the national level, including leading a coalition of states in the unsuccessful constitutional challenge to President Barack Obama’s federal health-care law and leading the Republican Attorneys General Association (RAGA).
Also on Thursday, after ending his presidential bid following losing Florida to Trump, U.S Sen. Marco Rubio, R-Fla., returned to the Senate and was asked about his political future by reporters. The Washington Post reports that Rubio shot down speculation that he was planning to run for governor in 2018 and he also dismissed the possibility that he would wind up on the Republican ticket in the vice presidential spot.
“I’m not going to be anybody’s vice president,” Rubio told reporters. “I’m just not gonna — I’m not interested in being vice president. I don’t mean that in a disrespectful way. I’m not going to be vice president. I’m not running for governor of Florida.”
Besides Putnam, potential Republican gubernatorial hopefuls include state CFO Jeff Atwater and former Florida House Speaker Will Weatherford. On the Democratic side, potential candidates include U.S. Rep. Gwen Graham, D-Fla., Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn and Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine.
Reach Kevin Derby at kderby@sunshinestatenews.com or follow him on Twitter: @KevinDerbySSN
