They share an interest in real estate, but President Donald Trump and the Florida Realtors Association have endorsed opposing candidates in the Republican race for governor.
The political arm of Realtors endorsed state agriculture commissioner Adam Putnam, who faces U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis in the Aug. 28 primary vote.
The Florida Chamber of Commerce and 45 county sheriffs across the state also have endorsed Putnam, a resident of Polk County.
U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis
President Trump has endorsed DeSantis in the race to replace Gov. Rick Scott, who is near the end of his maximum term in office.
The Florida Realtors’ Political Advocacy Committee (PAAC) also endorsed Republican candidates for the other three elected offices in the executive branch of Florida’s government.
“The health of Florida’s real estate industry and its economy go hand-in-hand,” Bill Martin, chief executive officer of the Florida Realtors, said in a prepared statement. “We need candidates who understand this relationship.”
The Realtors’ endorsement went to the state’s current chief financial officer, Jimmy Patronis, who is running for re-election unopposed by another Republican.
Patronis faces former state senator Jeremy Ring in the Nov. 6 general election.
The political arm of the Realtors also endorsed Florida Senator Denise Grimsley of Sebring, who is vying with three other Republicans in the race to replace Putnam as state agriculture commissioner.
A former circuit court judge, Ashley Moody, won the Realtors’ endorsement in her campaign to win election as the state attorney general. She faces Frank White, a state representative in Pensacola, in the Aug. 28 primary vote.
Moody’s supporters include Pam Bondi, the current state attorney general, and more than 40 county sheriffs. [FloridaPolitics.com] – Mike Seemuth