Florida Democratic gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum told the Tampa Bay Times on Monday that he plans on calling former Gov. Jeb Bush if he wins the election on Tuesday.
"I plan on calling Jeb Bush," the Tallahassee mayor told the Tampa Bay Times, adding that the Republican could provide him with valuable assistance.
"Even though I disagreed with him on a lot of policies — I mean I marched against him when I was a student at FAMU — I never once doubted that that Gov. Bush loved this state and was trying to move Florida in a way that he sincerely thought was in the best interests of Floridians. I found him responsive, I found him in a lot of ways open — not always, but I did find a level of openness and transparency and fidelity to Florida."
The newspaper notes that Democrats have been sidelined in Florida for about two decades, and that Gillum’s Republican opponent Ron DeSantis might have an easier time finding allies who have experience with the state’s government, but Gillum said that he plans on finding support among local government leaders, such as mayors like him.
Gillum added that he already has a good relationship with Florida’s incoming House Speaker Jose Oliva, who was also an Aspen Institute fellow in 2015, as was Jeb Bush’s son, George P. Bush.
"I do believe we could have a sensible conversation about how we can get things done," the mayor continued, singling out criminal justice reform as one key issue. "Jose's probably more of a libertarian than anything, and I think that makes him a little bit open to some ideas for what might save the state money."
© 2023 Newsmax. All rights reserved.