Primary shows state’s enthusiastic electorate

Victories by DeSantis, Gillum reveal that money isn’t everything.

TALLAHASSEE — Cracking into the numbers behind Florida’s Democratic and Republican primaries for governor exposes a few facts about the contests that set the stage for what is going to be a nationally watched general-election battle.

Among them:

Money isn’t everything

Just ask losing Republican Adam Putnam, who spent $36.2 million or Democratic also-ran Philip Levine who spent $37.7 million.

Or maybe go straight to Democratic nominee Andrew Gillum, who spent the least ($6.7 million) of all contenders. Powered by a compelling personal story and social media, Gillum is headed toward November with the backing of his four vanquished rivals.

Republican primary winner Ron DeSantis spent $16.2 million, less than half Putnam’s total. But he had President Donald Trump’s endorsement and a resume full of Fox News appearances to woo GOP faithful.

The rich are different

Democrat Jeff Greene, a Palm Beach billionaire, spent $228.98 per vote, to finish fourth in his party’s primary, with 10 percent of the vote. Levine spent $112.96 per vote and landed third. Putnam spent $61.20 per ballot of support, and finished 20 percentage points back of DeSantis.

Location is important

Carrying most of Florida’s 67 counties is not necessarily a path to victory. Second-place finisher Gwen Graham learned that on the Democratic side after being the top vote-getter in 44 counties.

Gillum captured only 18 counties. But many held deep pools of voters, and he clobbered Graham by 2-to-1 margins in Broward, Duval, Miami-Dade and Escambia.

Grassroots? Maybe for cows, not candidates

Putnam stumped relentlessly across the state in the closing weeks, focusing heavily on small-town Florida. He carried 28 Florida counties, but with the exception of Hillsborough and his home Polk County, few were heavily populated.

He may be the latest candidate to prove the adage that you can’t eat enough barbecue to get elected statewide in Florida.

Turnout has ticked up

Statewide turnout came in a shade over 27 percent — the highest level for a Florida primary since 2002. But in the partisan races for governor, both parties found something to crow about.

In Palm Beach County, voters cast roughly 230,000 ballots. Turnout ran at about 30 percent among Republicans, 33 percent among Democrats and just 8 percent among unaffiliated voters. Overall turnout was 25 percent, officials said. Supervisor of Elections Susan Bucher said the 34,000 who voted early at the county’s 15 sites was slightly more than she expected. Some 55,000 ballots were cast by mail.

For Republicans, 35 percent cast ballots, topping the 31 percent of Democrats and easing, somewhat, GOP fears of a blue tsunami.

But the 1.5 million Democrats who voted made it the biggest mid-term turnout for their side in 40 years. FYI: Democrats have not won the Governor’s Mansion in 20 years.

Still, the Democratic turnout – percentage-wise — was triple what it was in the last midterm, which preceded nominee Charlie Crist’s narrow loss in November to Republican Gov. Rick Scott.

Republicans can take some solace in results that show turnout in Democrat-heavy South Florida was lower than the state average while many rural and suburban counties, where Republicans typically do well, surpassed the 27 percent mark.

Liberty is worth defending

Best turnout in the state was in rural Liberty County, Florida’s least-populous county which sits on the edge of the Apalachicola National Forest.

What’s to do in Liberty County in August? Vote, evidently, since 55 percent of its 4,365 voters did just that.

Worst turnout? Osceola County, near Orlando, a heavily-Hispanic area where Democratic voter strength is double that of Republicans. Candidates from both parties have been making stops there, in part to court the support of recent arrivals from Puerto Rico, displaced by Hurricane Maria.

Despite the attention, just under 21 percent of the 212,170 voters showed up.

I get by with a little help from my friends

Gillum and DeSantis both got big bumps from major endorsements, Vermont U.S. Sen. Bernie Sanders for the Democrat and, of course, Trump’s tweets and an appearance for DeSantis.

Trump’s initial nod for DeSantis came via Twitter in late June, followed by the president attending a Tampa rally in late July for the candidate. At the time of the tweet, a Fox News poll had Putnam leading by double-digits, although other surveys showed DeSantis on top.

When the polls closed Tuesday, it was DeSantis by 20 percent.

For Gillum, Sanders’ endorsement came in the race’s final month and was soon followed by the former presidential contender making appearances with Gillum in Central Florida.

Before Sanders, polls showed Graham with a roughly 10-point lead.

On Tuesday, it was Gillum by 3 percentage points.

There’s not always no place like home

Graham represented Leon County in Congress for one term. And her family, including father, Bob, the former Florida governor, U.S. senator, and one-time presidential candidate, has been associated with Miami-Dade County since the 1920s.

But neither place was welcoming for Graham on Tuesday.

Graham finished a distant third in Miami-Dade. Graham’s candidacy, and legacy name, could only draw 16.5 percent of the vote in Florida’s most populous county.

Gillum carried Miami-Dade with 39 percent of the vote, followed by former Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine with 33 percent.

Heading north wasn’t any better for Graham.

Leon County, where Graham raised her family and worked as a school administrator, was lost to Gillum, the Tallahassee mayor. He collected 47 percent of the vote to her 39 percent, good enough for a second-place finish, which matched her statewide landing spot.