Keeping in lockstep with the wave of Republican revival that swept elections across the nation and state, local Democrats seeking office took a beating at the polls Tuesday.
In a District 14 Florida State Senate race marked with heated political exchange, Republican incumbent Steve Oelrich carried the conservative momentum, defeating Democratic challenger Perry C. McGriff Jr. by more than 10,000 votes.
Addressing a crowd of supporters at the Hampton Inn in downtown Gainesville to watch election results, a disappointed McGriff attempted to make peace with the defeat while thanking campaign staff and supporters for their effort.
Although he acknowledged a sense of hurt at some of Oelrich’s campaign ads, especially one regarding McGriff’s position on adoption, McGriff said that he gave Oelrich a congratulatory call that was “short and to the point” and told supporters that he would continue to be involved in public service.
“The Lord has wrapped his arms around me so I’ll be OK,” he said. “Life will go on.”
The race for County Commission District 4 produced one of the more surprising results of the night as Democratic candidate Cynthia Chestnut was defeated by Republican Susan Baird by more than 5,000 votes.
But it wasn’t all gloom for Democrats locally, as Lee Pinkoson won his contest for a seat on the County Commission District 2. He defeated the Republican candidate, Jim Gabriel, by a margin of more than 8,000 votes.
Jon Reiskind, the chairman of the Alachua County Democratic Party Executive Committee, said that while a Republican backlash was to be expected, the results still served as a disappointment for a party that, he believes, needs to reconnect with the public in order to improve from its midterm showing.
Although Reiskind acknowledged that Democrats have their work cut out for them between now and the next election, he remains optimistic that the party can recover.
“It’s a sad day for the Democrats but it’s not a tragic day,” he said.
