TEA Party of Florida, the only political tea party registered with the state Division of Elections, has endorsed Newt Gingrich as has The Florida Tea Party Coalition With Newt, just days after an ABC News report showed that Florida Tea Party supporters find Gingrich's "beating the pavement" more appealing than Romney's paid ads.Unlike Romney, thousands of Floridians have flocked to Gingrich’s events, hoping to shake hands with the presidential candidate and voice their concerns. That kind of enthusiasm, experts say, could well overcome Romney’s considerable financial advantage.
“Newt is everywhere here,” Ingram, a Tampa resident, said. “Where is Romney? He’s on television with the paid stuff. But the enthusiasm that’s being shown by the folks at the Gingrich rally, that translates into real votes. Anybody who shows up at a rally, they are darn well going to vote for them on Election Day.”
Tea Party darling Sarah Palin, while not endorsing Newt Gingrich, has stepped in to the battle for Florida as well by tearing into the Republican establishment that has thrown all but the kitchen sink at Gingrich in an attempt to influence Florida primary voters after Gingrich easily beat Romney in South Carolina and rose in the nation polls.
National pollsters show Romney ahead of Gingrich in Florida, yet local pollsters have the race at a dead heat between the two candidates with Rick Santorum and Ron Paul in third and fourth place, respectively.
Florida Primary day, Tuesday, January 31, 2012, promises to be very interesting.
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