Florida Rep. Charlie Crist (D), who’s amassed support from Florida unions, has gained another endorsement in the Communications Workers of America (CWA). The announcement came over the weekend as reports indicate Florida Governor Ron DeSantis (R) has a double-digit lead over gubernatorial hopefuls.
The union has announced a grassroots effort that includes making numerous phone calls to members and retirees. Curtis Hierro, the CWA senior legislative/political lead for Florida, made the announcement, commenting that it’s “a big investment.”
“We’re going to put boots on the ground and do everything we can to get ourselves a new Governor elected in November,” added Hierro.
Challenging Crist are state Senator Annette Taddeo (D) and Florida Agriculture Commissioner Nikki Fried (D), who’ve been overtaken by Crist in the polls.
However, although Crist has surged as the Democratic frontrunner, the Florida Chamber of Commerce has released a poll indicating that Governor DeSantis has a 10-percentage-point lead over the three gubernatorial challengers.
The poll was conducted between March 18th and the 28th by Cherry Communications, showing that the candidate faring the best against DeSantis is Fried. Among voters with no party affiliation, DeSantis holds 54% support along with 88% of Republicans.
When pitted against Crist, DeSantis holds 56% of support from voters with no party affiliation.
Crist, who formerly served as Governor of Florida as a Republican, still maintains support from unions who argue that he is the right choice to lead the state.
Steve Wisniewski, the President of CWA Local 3108 in Orlando, said that “Charlie Crist has a proven track record of putting Florida’s working class first.”
“As a Congressman Charlie answered the call for CWA and all working people, cosponsoring critical legislation like the PRO Act and voting for the 2021 Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act; which provides billions for broadband expansion and supports good union jobs,” added Wisniewski.
