Welcome to Florida’s 2nd To no surprise, Florida’s 2nd District turned out to be one of the closest House races this past election, between Republican Steve Southerland and opposing Democrat Gwen Graham, where Graham trumped the incumbent by just over 1 percent of the votes (Ballotpedia). What each of these candidates hoped to accomplish within their represented district differed dramatically, and now that it’s nearly six weeks past Election Day, its clear that Gwen Graham will have the opportunity to show the people of Northern Florida what she’s capable of. It’s an interesting case that a Democrat, and a female nonetheless, has secured her seat in a district that has been predominantly Republican in regards to congressional elections. The rural makeup and political landscape has naturally favored the Right in recent decades, but Graham was able to raise, and therefore spend, significantly more money within the region. The democratic victory was significant in an election that was defined by an overwhelming red republican wave as shown in Table 1. The money aspect of Florida’s 2nd, coupled with the image that each candidate aimed to display during their campaigning are two of the main concepts that will be discussed more in depth throughout the remainder of this study. As previously mentioned, North Florida, including Florida’s 2nd District is ultimately rural and has a constituency that is 71% Caucasian, stretching a whole thirteen counties. Although mainly republican, the district has voted more liberal in presidential elections, and leans significantly less republican as it contains its largest population center located at Tallahassee. The PVI expressed within this district is +6 in favor of the Republican Party.
Candidate Profiles: Gwen Graham (D) Gwen Graham, the daughter of former Florida governor Bob Graham, ran as a Democrat with independent policies and aspects incorporated within her campaign. Gwen received a bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina, and went on to earn a law degree at American University in 1988. Following her education, she went on to help in the private sector on energy and environmental issues, which grew her belief that America must seek to establish energy independence. She also operated as PTA president and chair of the School Advisory Council. Along with her job in Washington, Gwen is a mother of three. Aside from her personal life and years prior to acquiring the House seat, Gwen ran an efficient campaign where many factors contributed to her success. Early on, the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee launched a Jumpstart Campaign aimed to target vulnerable Republicans, and with controversy in Southerland’s 2nd District, they backed Graham to be the one to take back the seat (Brand 2014). Graham’s campaign also focused more on trying to hold Southerland accountable for his past actions, or lack-there-of, and introduce an independent voice in the capital where she prides herself on being able to reach reasonable solutions between both sides. Graham also had plans to protect Medicare policies for seniors, strengthen the district's economy, and modify the Affordable Care Act to provide a balanced representation in Congress. Stated earlier, Graham’s father, and past governor, is admired throughout Northern Florida, and has been at her side through the period of her campaign, which has helped boost her reputation throughout the region. Graham projected her campaign image via social media as, well where her official website and Facebook read “An independent voice standing up for North Florida”. Not only does this relay her political position to potential voters, but it even offers multiple outlets to where you can help support and spread the word. The media can often clutter the political atmosphere for candidates in regards to their approach of relaying information to the public, which is where their websites come into play. Technology and social media for both candidates, particularly Graham, has been tremendously helpful in connecting with their audience and conveying information. Graham also ran on principles that encouraged transparency within legislation as well as the money side, which we will discuss in length later. We also saw Graham express her aspirations through two debates against incumbent Southerland, which she ignited by a letter sent to Southerland offering him a challenge in front of the people of North Florida. She stuck to her core values about the economy as well as protecting women and families. She also touched on measures that aimed to lower education costs, help small businesses, and protect the benefits of Floridian seniors. The second of the two debate continued with Graham holding Southerland accountable for past actions where she criticized him for jeopardizing Social Security and Medicare, his apathy toward the government shutdown, and his history of voting against priorities such as equal pay. Along with the debates and her own word, Gwen utilized public figures and celebrities that publicly endorsed her in hopes to win the votes of the undecided Floridians. Gwen Graham announced that the Blue Dog Coalition has endorsed her campaign, which is a group of independent minded, fiscally conservative Democrats. In addition, Florida Senator Bill Nelson endorsed her, and Bill Clinton headed a Get Out The Vote Rally in support of her. I think her most important affiliation is the endorsement from EMILY’s List; an organization dedicated to electing pro-choice Democratic women into office. As far as celebrities, Graham hooked up with southern-loved musician Jimmy Buffet. It’s also important to note that the Tallahassee Democrat news outlet endorsed Graham.
Candidate Profiles: Steve Southerland (R) In the other corner, Steve Southerland held Florida’s 2nd house seat the past four years, after defeating long-time chair holder Allen Boyd, and now had his work cut out for him going up against Gwen Graham. Steve is a lifelong resident of Panama City, and earned a B.S. degree in Business Management from Troy State University and an A.A. degree in Mortuary Science from Jefferson State Junior College. Steve is married to his wife Susan and a father to four of their daughters. He is also a Charter member and former trustee of Northstar Church, served as Chairman of the Bay County Chamber of Commerce and Chairman of the Salvation Army Advisory Board, as well as other community boards including the Florida State University Panama City Development Board and the Covenant Hospice Foundation Board. Steve is a longtime member of the National Rifle Association and founding member and former Vice President of the Bay Patriots. In regards to the campaign, Southerland utilized values that proved him successful in his previous election years such as 2010 and 2012. Although there was skepticism of his commitment to the 2014 campaign, Southerland has been fairly successful in instilling his core conservative values. The media supported the skepticism where the press stated that his efforts in prior campaigns were much more organized and more dedicated to the chase of securing the seat. His latest campaign aimed to relate to his constituency where he seeks to reinforce the rights of recreational fishermen, as well as limit federal implementation of the current Clean Water Act. He also pushed to create work requirements for food stamp recipients. Southerland criticized Gwen for having a lack of experience in politics, and criticized her for past actions claiming that in recent years she supported Nancy Pelosi, and now has flopped saying she does not support Pelosi for the party’s top leadership position. He also articulated in the debates that Gwen had been acting as a lobbyist in regards to her former work at a law firm, Andrews & Kurth, which we later found out was mostly false. One of the more irregular events that took place earlier this year was due to a Southerland gaffe, where he held a men-only fundraiser. This, combined with new stories revealing that Southerland voted against the bipartisan Violence Against Women Act without reading the bill seriously damaged his public image throughout not only the district, but the entire state. While Graham’s campaign and Florida media jumped on this opportunity to take shots at Southerland, it’s important realize that Southerland lives in a house with a wife and four daughters, and denies any bias against females. The former congressman also ran his campaign based on principles that revolved around expanding personal freedom by shrinking the size of government. He sought to encourage free enterprise through lower taxes and fewer regulations. Steve also supported the pro-family agenda similar to Graham. During his time as a house representative, Southerland’s endorsers such as Florida Right to Life and Family Research Council Action committee has enhanced his reputation within the community.
It’s All About The Money While public image and projected reputation through the media is crucial, we’ve learned throughout the duration of our class that money is one of the, if not the most important factor in running a campaign. Given that both candidates have been able to raise well over the national average, this race ranked as one of the more expensive ones this election. Although it came nowhere close to the most costly House race of Ohio’s 8th District, where over $17.5 million has been raised between candidates (overwhelmingly Boehner), Graham was able to trump Southerland financially. Gwen’s victory supported the 2010 statistic, which states that 94 percent of candidates who raise more money than their opponent end up victorious come Election Day (Jacobson 2011). Although candidates try to clarify their positions on issues through their websites, press statements, and political debates and ads, the media environment often complicates the process amongst voters, which is why much of what the candidate does is no where near as effective as to how influential money can be, especially in the politics of today. The main contrast between each candidate’s funding came when we take a closer look at in-district vs. out-of-district funding. Table 2 shows how Southerland naturally had the upper hand within his current district at the time, but Graham was much more effective at securing out-of-district funding which ultimately deemed the more efficient approach. Southerland’s campaign was funded mainly from PAC contributions along with large donations, primarily from other candidate committees, and industries such as health and agriculture. In this particular House race we see somewhat of an oddity where the Democrat has managed to win over the retired in regards to raising money. Graham raised nearly three times the money from the retired than has Southerland, and has also managed to secure even a greater portion of large contributions from businesses involved in industries such as finance and law. Graham’s main contributor, to no surprise, is EMILY’s List, which stands for ‘Early Money Is Like Yeast’, discussed earlier in this case study. This committee, along with Graham’s leadership PAC, has been two main players in supporting funding for advertising in the media. Steve Southerland has used a portion of his fundraising to launch a handful of attack ads. Southerland, along with the NRCC has funded these ads in hopes to discourage potential supporters of Graham. Although it’s an extremely large factor, money doesn’t always secure a victory. Sometimes what the people need is a change that’s deeper than how far the dollar can reach. In reference to Medvic, it’s clear that the incumbent usually has a stronger pull in the community with name recognition and the availability of resources, but this House race is unique in that the challenger has been able to raise more money.
Future for Graham’s 2nd Congressional District The tale of this campaign race between the two candidates came down to two central factors: money and public reputation. While the former typically trumps the latter, Gwen Graham seemed effective in utilizing and manipulating both factors in her quest to secure a seat in the House of Representatives. Her public affiliations, beginning with her father’s legacy in Florida, down to support from a former President of the United States aided in her victory. Although by a slim margin, on November 4th Florida’s 2nd District expressed that change was needed via their right to vote, and unseated former incumbent Steve Southerland. Just this week Graham has begun moving forward and has launched a North Florida Jobs Tour in support of small business owners. Graham also stated that training programs for community college students and veterans will begin to address economic development and job growth, specifically dealing with infrastructure. Gwen Graham also believes in the Health Care Reform Act and says she is open to discuss parts that need to be reformed with fellow representatives. It will be interesting to see how influential Graham’s independent-based voice will be in Washington, and how more or less effective she will be at representing her constituency that defines Florida’s 2nd Congressional District.

Appendices
Table 1

Table 2

Work Cited

Brand, Anna. "'30 in 30': Women Candidates to Watch in 2014 -- Gwen Graham." Msnbc.com. NBC News Digital, 29 Aug. 2014. Web. 16 Dec. 2014.

"Florida's 2nd Congressional District Elections, 2014." - Ballotpedia. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 Dec. 2014.

"Florida District 02 Race." Opensecrets RSS. Web. 13 Dec. 2014.

"Gwen Graham." - Ballotpedia. Web. 12 Dec. 2014.

Jacobson, Louis. "Occupy Wall Street Protester's Sign Says 94 Percent of Deeper-pocketed Candidates Win." @politifact. N.p., 17 Oct. 2011. Web. 16 Dec. 2014.

"News - Gwen Graham for Congress." Gwen Graham for Congress. Web. 10 Dec. 2014.

"Representative Steve Southerland, II." Representative Steve Southerland, II. Web. 10 Dec. 2014.

"Steve Southerland II." - Ballotpedia. Web. 12 Dec. 2014.