Early voting is now underway in Florida, and it is very important that everyone who is registered perform their civic duty and vote in this election.
One of the most important campaigns in Florida this year is the race for governor between incumbent Republican Gov. Rick Scott and Democratic challenger Charlie Crist. In a race between a guy who could pass for Voldemort and a guy who doesn’t know what he believes in, it may seem as if there isn’t a clear choice.
Florida voters should ask two questions about this race: "Who has better ideas and goals for the future of Florida?" and "Which candidate has a record that backs up his statements?"
If you direct these questions toward both candidates, the choice couldn’t be any clearer: The front-runner who is destined to continue to do the best job for Florida is Scott.
I could focus my attention on how Florida’s economy has vastly improved. Under Scott, more than 650,000 jobs have been created in the last four years, compared to Crist’s loss of more than 825,000 jobs during his last stint as governor, according to Scott’s website. However, these comparisons aren’t completely fair, given the fact that Crist governed Florida during the Great Recession, something over which he had no control.
I could focus my attention on their differing views on the Affordable Care Act, but this is really more of a federal issue that needs to be battled in Washington
Yes, Scott opposes the harmful Affordable Care Act law, but there is nothing he or Crist can do about it. As long as the Affordable Care Act remains the law of the land, Scott’s hands are mostly tied.
I have always felt that the best issue to compare candidates on is education. It is the most important responsibility state and local governments have. So, who has the best record and vision for education in Florida?
If you would have asked me four years ago, I would have never thought Scott would be the best candidate on education. In fact, back in 2010, the very first year I could vote, I voted for Bill McCollum in the Republican primary and then voted for Democratic candidate Alex Sink in the general election.
I was scared about what would happen to Florida’s education system if Scott became governor, a fear that was confirmed the very first year he took office. Florida education spending dropped $1.3 billion. I’ve never bought into the delusion that only increasing spending will fix America’s education woes, but a decrease this large almost never has positive effects.
But then, some good things began to happen. Scott realized that education is an investment that needs to be prioritized, and he has begun to reverse his initial downward trend for education.
Florida’s education budget is now at its highest point ever, reaching $18.9 billion. To further improve upon this, Scott is pushing for next year’s budget to be $19.6 billion, which would set a new record for per-pupil spending in the state of Florida.
In 2011, Scott signed into law the Student Success Act, which bases teachers’ pay on a legislative analysis of performance (including student performance), allows new teachers the opportunity to earn higher salaries faster and hires teachers based on annual contracts and not life-long, impenetrable contracts.
This piece of legislation is highly controversial, but I think time will show that these reforms will prove useful to those they are intended to help: our state’s children.
It’s almost assumed now that because Crist is a Democrat, he is the candidate that supports education the most. However, this assumption is false.
Scott isn’t the only governor guilty of initially gutting education spending. Crist also cut education spending his second year in office by $800 million, and these cuts were never reversed.
In contrast, Scott’s administration is now spending more on education than any year that Crist was governor.
Crist had the opportunity when he was governor to enact a merit pay system for teachers but vetoed it to prepare to his switch as an independent in the 2010 Senate race. He put his ambitions above his responsibility to Florida’s children, which is completely inexcusable.
Additionally, Crist is a big supporter of standardized testing, a system that forces teachers to "teach to the test" and become bogged down by bureaucracy.
If you’re still undecided in this race, and education is one of your main selling points for a candidate, then the decision couldn’t be any easier.
When you vote, vote for education. Scott is the best candidate to improve upon Florida’s education system and continue reforms that are desperately needed.
Nick Eagle is a UF economics and political science senior. His columns appear on Mondays.
[A version of this story ran on page 7 on 10/27/2014]
