Gillum Concedes Florida Governor's Contest

Democrat Andrew Gillum has again yielded to Republican Rep. Ron DeSantis in the Florida governor's race, finishing one of two races in the state and making President Trump's ally the highest official in the pivotal state. .

But the mayor of Tallahassee, who would have been the first black governor of the state, promised that "this fight would continue" in a Facebook post in which he was standing in front of a lake with his wife, R.J.

"R.J. and I wanted to take a moment to congratulate Mr. DeSantis on becoming the governor of the great state of Florida, "said Gillum. "I will tell you that it was the journey of our lives."

Gillum, who upset a more established candidate for winning the Democratic governorship and is considered a rising star in the Democratic Party, said he was not done with politics.

"We wanted to ensure that every vote … as long as the vote was legally expressed, we would like these votes to be counted," said Gillum, "and we want you to know that even though this election may be out of date …" it was not just about an election cycle, it was about creating the kind of change in that state that really allows the voices of citizens to be heard again in our government. "

Gillum had initially conceded the night of the elections, but canceled the deal to allow an automatic count for both the governor race and the hotly contested Senate race between Senator Bill Nelson (D) and Governor Rick Scott (D) . This race was still unresolved on Saturday, as the main counties continued counting the ballots by hand after an automatic recount did not sufficiently expand the margin.

The recount ended Thursday and confirmed that DeSantis had won the race. Election officials in Florida had planned to certify DeSantis' victory on Tuesday. But Gillum had not confirmed that he would accept defeat before Saturday afternoon.

After recounting the machine. DeSantis said in a statement that he was focused on his transition to the governorship and invited Gillum to meet him.

"Ideas campaigns must give way to governance and bringing citizens together to secure Florida's future. Now that the campaign is over, this is where I will focus, "said DeSantis.

The manual recounting continued on Saturday in the Senate competition in which Scott narrowly led. The automatic and then manual recount was automatically triggered because the initial margin between Scott and Nelson was within the legal limits of 0.25%. The recount is due to be completed at noon on Sunday, highlighting Florida's chaotic electoral system and recalling the visions of the 2000 presidential recount in the Sunshine State.

During the count, Nelson had accumulated more than 12,000 votes behind Scott. His campaign had hoped that a reconsideration of the ballots – particularly in the highly democratic Broward County – would help narrow the gap. The first results of a manual recount, however, did not seem close enough for Nelson to fill the gap.

DeSantis' ascension to the governorship is a major victory for President Trump, who triumphed over the congressman as he was a GOP primary school underdog and who organized two rallies in Florida in recent years. days of the campaign.

DeSantis has aligned himself closely with the president, broadcasting a television commercial in which he was seen reading "The Art of the Market" to one of his children. As governor, he would be well placed to help Trump's reelection campaign into the country's biggest movement. State.

Gillum has used progressive policies such as "Medicare for All" and a minimum hourly wage of $ 15. He rejected what some saw as racist attacks against his candidacy. After winning the primary, DeSantis said Florida voters should not "bang on it" by voting for Gillum; and Trump has made fun of the Democrat as a "thief."

A supporter of Gillum described the Democrat as a "way forward".

"He treated that with so much grace and class," said Guy Wheeler, a therapist from Fort Lauderdale. "He could have bent down, but I think even his opponents, including the president, respect his way of handling things."

Wheeler said the mayor of Tallahassee had touched on the subject of the race in order to advance the conversation.

"He lit up the belly, and he drew attention to what we all know about here," said Wheeler. "I do not want to compare it to [Barack] Obama, but he is at the forefront of the movement that will bring this country together. "

Amy Gardner, Beth Reinhard, Lori Rozsa and Sean Sullivan contributed to this report.

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