Florida's 19th congressional district special election, 2010

Florida's 19th congressional district special election, 2010

April 13, 2010

Nominee Ted Deutch Edward J. Lynch Party Democratic Republican Popular vote 43,255 24,539 Percentage 62.1% 35.1%

Representative before election Robert Wexler Democratic Elected Representative Ted Deutch Democratic

The 2010 special election for Florida's 19th congressional district took place on April 13, 2010, to fill the vacancy caused by Representative Robert Wexler's resignation, effective the evening of January 3, 2010, from the United States House of Representatives. Wexler, who had represented the 19th district since 1997, left Congress to become president of the Center for Middle East Peace & Economic Cooperation.^[1]

Governor Charlie Crist on November 4, 2009 set the primary for February 2 and the general election for April 13, 2010 (rescheduled from April 6 to avoid Passover).^[2][3] Democrat Ted Deutch won the Special Election with 62%, with Republican Edward Lynch received 35%. This was the first election since the passage of the Healthcare reform bill. This district leans strongly Democratic with a Cook PVI of D+15.

Candidates

Democrats

• Ted Deutch, State Senator^[4]
• Ben Graber, former Broward County Commissioner^[5]

Republicans

• Edward J. Lynch, entrepreneur^[6]
• Joe Budd, financial planner
• Curt Price, retired police officer

Independent

• Jim McCormick, small business owner^[7]

Primary campaign

The primary, held on February 2, received little media attention. Democratic State Senator Ted Deutch, who was endorsed by Wexler, won the Democratic Primary.^[8] Deutch raised more money than any other candidate, close to one million dollars.^[9] While Graber, in his 2008 primary challenge to Congressman Wexler, vocally attacked his opponent, the Democratic Primary this time remained more toned down. Graber argued that he was the most liberal candidate; while Deutch highlighted his accomplishments as State Senator.^[10]

The Republican primary was more closely fought. Lynch and Budd attacked each other over debts owed by their respective businesses, and all three vied to get the tea-party movement's backing.^[10] Both Budd and Price said they would not support Lynch in the general election if he won the primary due to the back taxes owed on his business.^[11] The result was extremely close, with Lynch defeating Budd by 46 votes.^[8]

Primary results

Democratic

Democratic Primary, Florida's 19th Congressional District Election, 2010

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Democratic	Ted Deutch	23,958	85.2%
	Democratic	Ben Graber	4,151	14.8%

Republican

Republican Primary, Florida's 19th Congressional District Election, 2010

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Republican	Edward Lynch	3,320	40.7%
	Republican	Joe Budd	3,274	40.1%
	Republican	Curt Price	1,566	19.2%

General election results

General Election, Florida's 19th Congressional District Election, 2010

Party		Candidate	Votes	%	±
	Democratic	Ted Deutch	43,255	62.1%
	Republican	Edward Lynch	24,539	35.2%

References

1. Man, Anthony (October 14, 2009). "Wexler makes it official: leaving Congress in January". South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
2. Leary, Alex (November 4, 2009). "Crist sets election dates to replace Wexler". St. Petersburg Times.
3. "Crist Reschedules Special Election in Boca Raton to Not Fall on Passover". Fox News. Associated Press. November 25, 2009.
4. Leary, Alex (October 15, 2009). "Ted Deutch will run for Wexler's seat". St. Petersburg Times.
5. Man, Anthony (October 21, 2009). "Congressional race goes retail as candidates visit Kings Point". South Florida Sun-Sentinel.
6. "Frankel decides not to run for Congress". WPBF. 2009-11-14. Retrieved 2009-12-03.
7. "Jim McCormick for Congress - Splash". Votemccormick.com. Retrieved 2010-08-21.
8. The New York Times http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2010/02/03/us/politics/AP-US-Congress-Wexlers-Seat.html?_r=1&scp=1&sq=florida%20wexler&st=cse. Missing or empty |title= (help)
9. Blake, Aaron (2010-02-02). "Deutch expected to replace Wexler". The Hill.
10. "Primary candidates vie for Wexler's seat in Congress". Sun Sentinel. 2010-02-02. Retrieved 2010-08-21.
11. Bennett, George (Jan 28, 2010). "GOP foes won't back Lynch if he wins primary for Wexler seat; tax liens the issue". The Palm Beach Post.