News
Staunch Common Core Foe & Outsider Curt Clawson Wins Primary for FL-19 Congressional Seat
April, 2014After an extremely negative, contentious battle, anti-Common Core businessman and political outsider Curt Clawson handily won the Republican primary in Florida's 19th congressional district. Clawson's main rival, Senate Majority Lizbeth Benacquisto and GOP establishment/ Common Core proponent Jeb Bush choice for the position was within 400 votes of coming in third. As we had previously reported, we believe that Common Core was a significant issue in this campaign.
The totals were as follows:
Curt Clawson 38% - 26,281 votes
Lizbeth Benacquisto 26% - 17,834 votes
Paige Kreegel 25% - 17,442 votes
Michael Dreikorn 11% - 7,498 votes.
Lizbeth Benacquisto 26% - 17,834 votes
Paige Kreegel 25% - 17,442 votes
Michael Dreikorn 11% - 7,498 votes.
In an incredibly gracious victory speech, Clawson urged forgiveness and unity after the viciously negative attack ads that were directed his way. He also reached out to Hispanics, speaking in fluent Spanish, and African Americans He talked of his faith, his family, the Constitution, his experiences in business and playing basketball. When he discussed what issues would be important to him in Washington, he spoke of the economy, Obamacare, and Common Core.
As evidenced by the recent Sunshine State News poll showing 2:1 opposition to Common Core among Republicans, we believe that Common Core will continue to play a prominent role in races at every level all over the country, especially in Governor Rick Scott's re-election campaign. The latest numbers show that despite millions of dollars spent on ads against Charlie Crist, he is behind 5% in the polls.
