Voters in Northeast Florida are heading to the polls today to choose Republican nominees for three legislative districts expected to be easily carried by the GOP in special elections in April.
The highest-profile race pits Rep. Travis Hutson (R-Elkton), Rep. Ronald "Doc" Renuart (R-Ponte Vedra Beach) and Flagler Beach Republican Dennis McDonald for the nomination in a Senate district vacated by Sen. John Thrasher (R-St. Augustine). Thrasher resigned from the Legislature last year to become the president of Florida State University, his alma mater.
Hutson has spent more than $450,000 on the race, according to state election records, to more than $170,000 by Renuart. McDonald, who is expected to come in a distant third, has spent almost $6,000.
The winner will face Democrat David Cox.
The district includes all of St. Johns, Flagler and Putnam counties and the northeast corner of Volusia County. It's a seat that has belonged to powerful lawmakers, from former Senate President Jim King to Thrasher, who was chairman of the influential Senate Rules Committee and at one point was a contender for the Senate's top spot.
"Ultimately, I don't think anybody's going to be the next Senator Thrasher," Hutson says.
Because both Hutson and Renuart had to resign to run for the Senate seat, whoever loses will be out of the Legislature entirely in April. The race has grown heated in recent weeks as the two have traded allegations about contributions to Democratic candidates and the role of third-party groups in the race.
"Honesty is a foundation of public service," Renuart says in the opening of one of his commercials. "This is a concept my opponent simply doesn't understand."
Renuart is particularly upset about third-party ads that peddle, in the words of his website, "outrageous false claims accusing me of working with Obama and Crist to raise taxes." Hutson counters that the criticisms of Renuart haven't come from his campaign.
"I have no control over any third parties," Hutson says.
But Renuart says a group Hutson controls ultimately paid for the negative advertising by running it through two other independent groups.
"For him to try to make that claim is a bunch of baloney," Renuart says.
At the same time, Renuart has tried to tie Hutson to contributions his family's corporation made to Democratic candidates. He also highlights a contribution made by Hutson to Charlie Crist's U.S. Senate campaign in 2010, but those funds came before the former Republican governor bolted the GOP to run as an independent.
Renuart emphasizes his experience and points out that the state Senate will be at work on the budget well before the April 7 special general election, meaning whoever wins the seat will have to scrap to make sure the district gets a fair share.
"I hope that the citizens of the area realize that they're going to have to pick the best fighter who's not just a come-along, go-along guy," he says.
If elected, Renuart says he will focus on jobs and water issues, including the St. Johns River and shoreline erosion.
Hutson emphasizes legislative proposals he's already working on, like legislation that would return money from budget projects vetoed by the governor to the state's rainy-day fund, and a plan he's devising that would allow tax credits for businesses that make certain capital investments in public schools —a construction firm that gives tools to a school, for example—to help train students.
The Senate candidacies of Hutson and Renuart touched off battles for each of their House seats. Hutson represents Flagler County as well as parts of St. Johns and Volusia counties, while Renuart represents a portion of St. Johns County.
In the race for House District 24, Hutson'sformer seat, Palm Coast Republican Paul Renner has spent almost $190,000, badly outspending his two rivals, Danielle Anderson and Ron Sanchez. Renner lost a GOP race for another Northeast Florida House seat despite being heavily backed by the establishment last year. The winner will face Democrat Adam Morley.
In House District 17, Renuart's former district, St. Augustine Republican Michael Davis has spent almost $135,000, while St. Johns County Commissioner Cyndi Stevenson has burned through almost $105,000. Attorney Jack Capra has spent almost $36,000. The winner will face Judy Stevens, a candidate running without a party affiliation.
Copyright News Service of Florida
Photo Credit: This work, "Election 2015," is a derivative work of "Election Day" by George Larcher, used under CC BY 2.0. "Election 2015" is licensed under CC BY 2.0.
