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Gwen Graham opens campaign headquarters in Orlando

She's the second Democrat running for governor to set up shop along the all-important I-4 corridor.
 
Published May 7, 2018|Updated May 7, 2018

Democratic candidate for governor Gwen Graham opened up her campaign headquarters in Orlando on Saturday.

"I'm so excited to officially be a resident of Orlando," Graham said. "Central Florida is at the heart of our 67-county strategy."

Graham, who has lived in Tallahassee for the last three decades, is the second Democratic candidate for governor to open up shop in Orlando. The headquarters for Chris King, who lives in nearby Winter Park, are just up the street.

But why move to Orlando?

For one, the location makes geographic sense. Tallahassee is so far away from the state's major cities that some lawmakers want to move the state's capital to Orlando.

But it's also at the heart of the Interstate 4 corridor, the stretch of swing voters between St. Petersburg and Daytona Beach that would be critical for winning a general election.

The Times' Adam C. Smith explained the area's importance this way in this great 2016 piece:

"The basic political math for winning statewide races has been consistent for decades: Republicans rack up votes in conservative north and Southwest Florida; Democrats clean up in the population centers of South Florida; and the two sides battle it out in the high-growth areas along I-4."

Graham, a former congresswoman and daughter of former governor and Senator Bob Graham, is considered one of the frontrunners on the Democratic side.

Her other two primary opponents have decided to set up shop closer to home.

Andrew Gillum's headquarters are in Tallahassee, where he's mayor. And Democrat Philip Levine's base is in Miami Beach, where he was mayor until last year.