From bitter primary fights, Buchanan, Jennings move on
Sarasota Herald Tribune
SARASOTA — Republican Vern Buchanan and Democrat Christine Jennings emerged from harsh primary battles Tuesday to face each other in what promises to be an expensive and contentious general election race for the District 13 congressional seat.
Buchanan survived a bitter five-way GOP race by pumping more than $2 million of his own money into the costliest congressional campaign in the nation.
Late Tuesday night, state Rep. Nancy Detert conceded to Buchanan. Although Detert received more votes in Sarasota County, Buchanan’s margin of victory in Manatee County proved decisive.
Former Sarasota County Republican Party chairman Tramm Hudson, who tried to knock Buchanan off with aggressive attack ads, state Rep. Donna Clarke and former state Rep. Mark Flanagan all trailed.
In the Democratic primary, Jennings turned the tables on Jan Schneider, who had failed twice as the Democrats’ nominee against Katherine Harris in the past two District 13 elections. After losing to Schneider in the 2004 primary, Jennings coasted this time and quickly sought to distance herself from Schneider’s previous showings.
“I don’t even want to compare my campaign to what my opponent did,” she said of Schneider in an interview.
The race for the District 13 race has national implications. Democrats have targeted the seat as one they could potentially pick up in their effort to grab control of Congress in November.
The seat is open for the first time since 2002 because of Harris’ run for the U.S. Senate.
Buchanan, who owns car dealerships, including Sarasota Ford, is making his first run for public office. His challenge is to unify the party after the fractious primary campaign dominated by negative ads. Buchanan can expect support from the national GOP, having been a major contributor to the Republican National Committee and fundraising chairman for U.S. Sen. Mel Martinez.
Buchanan, 55, of Longboat Key, appealed strongly to Republican conservatives in the primary, emphasizing a tough stance on immigration and opposition to abortion.
Detert, who is leaving the state Legislature after eight years because of term limits, pointed to Buchanan’s money as the deciding factor.
“If I have to lose to a $4 million man, there’s nothing I can do about that,” Detert said. “I had a megaphone and Vern Buchanan had a bullhorn.”
Hudson, a Sarasota banker who helped elect other candidates as a county GOP leader, talked the party line after his loss, although he didn’t mention Buchanan by name.
“Whoever is the nominee, I wish them success in November,” Hudson said in an interview after a concession speech to supporters.
Jennings, 60, enjoyed the support of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, which picked the District 13 race as one of three in Florida where Republicans were perceived to be vulnerable.
A Republican until 1990, Jennings hopes to appeal to a cross-section of voters to win a district where Republicans have the most registered voters. She plans to emphasize the issues of health care, deficit reduction and a need for “checks and balances” in Washington.
“I will be on the phone (Wednesday) with Republican friends, Democratic friends and independents,” Jennings said at a victory party at Michael’s on East in Sarasota.
Democrats sought a different face after seeing Schneider, a lawyer, lose to Harris twice. Jennings’ support from the national party rankled Schneider, who filed a complaint with the Federal Election Commission over a party fundraiser Jennings attended in June. She was also miffed by negative ads run by Jennings’ campaign.
Schneider was ambiguous about her future political plans and indicated her support for Jennings would be lukewarm at best.
Money will continue to be a significant factor in the District 13 race. Harris far outspent Schneider in the past two elections. Whether the gap this time will be as large depends on how much more of his own money Buchanan is willing to spend and how much the national parties put in.\
Jennings has raised nearly $1 million.
Imagine that. A Republican wins a primary by being pro-life, talking up border security and appealing to conservatives. McCain would be shocked. This may call for a drastic re-alignment of his primary agenda in '08. Nah, he's not that intelligent. :-)
The republican primary had over 60,000 votes, the democrat primary had about 38,000 votes.
That should be good for the republican winner. It is true though that the democrat winner had 23,000 votes, while Buchanon had 20,000 votes in his win.
I hope that the republican supporters of the losers in that district can rally behind the winner. Of course, "moderate" republicans are often found to abandon the party when they don't get their way.