Families & Small Businesses Win at the Ballot Box

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CONTACT: Edie Ousley, 850-521-1231 or 850-251-6261
eousley@flchamber.com

Floridians Support Pro-Jobs, Florida Chamber Candidates Over Trial Lawyers

Download Primary Election Results.

TALLAHASSEE, FL. (August 26, 2014) – Families and small businesses were the winners Tuesday night when Floridians supported pro-jobs candidates backed by the Florida Chamber of Commerce on primary election night.

Preliminary results show that 26 of 30 state House and Senate candidates endorsed by the Florida Chamber won their primary and Gov. Rick Scott, the Florida Chamber-endorsed candidate for Governor, won his primary. In Florida Chamber-backed races vs. trial lawyers, voters sided with job creators over job killers in three out of three races.

“Florida voters are smart, and tonight they voted in support of jobs and creating more opportunities for families and small businesses,” said Marian Johnson, Senior Vice President of Political Strategy at the Florida Chamber of Commerce. “Candidates elected tonight will help grow Florida’s private sector and will help keep Florida moving in the right direction. Congratulations to all primary election winners.”

Twenty-one of the Florida Chamber-backed primary candidates move onto the General Election, and they join 44 additional pro-jobs candidates previously endorsed in General Election House, Senate and Cabinet races.

Members of the Florida Chamber, the Florida Chamber Political Institute (FCPI) and business leaders attended the Florida Chamber’s Primary Election Watch as polling results came in.

“Tonight, I watched Florida’s business community come together and unify around pro-jobs candidates,” said Tom Pennekamp, Past Chair of the Florida Chamber Political Institute and Government Relations Manager, SunTrust of Florida, who attended the Florida Chamber’s Primary Election Night Watch. “The Florida Chamber will continue to advocate for job growth in our state.”

The Florida Chamber’s candidate endorsements came after a comprehensive and deliberative candidate selection process. The Florida Chamber Political Institute held five candidate interview sessions across the state and interviewed more than 100 non-incumbent candidates – in addition to reviewing each candidate’s completed questionnaire. Incumbent candidates were evaluated on numerous factors, including legislator grades on the Florida Chamber’s Legislative Report Card.

A complete listing of primary election results for House and Senate primary election results are available by clicking here or visiting the Elections Center at www.FloridaChamber.com/2014Election.

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Established in 1916 as Florida’s first statewide business advocacy organization, the Florida Chamber of Commerce is the voice of business and the state’s largest federation of employers, chambers of commerce and associations, aggressively representing small and large businesses from every industry and every region. The Florida Chamber works within all branches of government to affect those changes set forth in the annual Florida Business Agenda, and which are seen as critical to secure Florida’s future. The Florida Chamber works closely with its Political Operations and the Florida Chamber Foundation. Visit www.FloridaChamber.com for more information.