The winner of the Palm Beach County REC straw poll was never in doubt. The vote took place on Wed. Oct. 14 but you could see what the results were going to be 2 months ago.
The results: Marco Rubio 90, Crist 17, Bob Smith 11, Marion Thorpe 4.
At the August meeting of the PBC REC Crist narrowly avoided censure, by just one vote. Even those that argued against censure were not fans of Governor Crist. I myself argued that while I was unhappy with Crist's performance as Florida's Governor and as the "leader" of the State Party, censure was an inappropriate solution to a political disagreement. I thought that the straw poll was the place to express my displeasure with our small "r" republican governor. RPOF Chairman Greer and Crist are seeing the one-sided results of the 9 straw polls that have now been held. But for some reason, like many establishment politicians, they aren't getting the message that the base of the Party is sending. Maybe when Charlie loses straw polls in Broward and Pinellas he'll see the light. What he ought to do is withdraw from the Senate race and go back to finishing his term as governor and then run for reelection. He needs to support actively and wholeheartedly our congressional nominees in all districts. He also needs to back the Party's nominee for US Senate. As the man whose face graces the RPOF membership card, I'd say Governor Crist sees himself as the leader of the State GOP. If that's the case, he needs to act the part. Only then can Crist run for higher office with grassroots support.
This could be a rare case of a situation where the person running for higher office will be dependent on the results of local races for their future success. The Governor could find that his fortunes could hinge on the success or failure of a handful of Florida's US House candidates. People like Robert Lowry, Allen West and Edward Lynch may hold Charlie Crist's political fate in their hands.
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