Fried brings her campaign to Tallahassee, one day after Crist

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. (WCTV) - As primaries inch closer and closer, Gubernatorial Candidates Nikki Fried and Charlie Crist are making their final campaign trips.

Tuesday night, Fried was in Tallahassee to make what she called her closing arguments.

This, coming one night after Crist made a campaign stop here in the capital city on Monday.

With primaries now just one week away, both Crist and Fried are looking to make their last push to appeal to voters.

“We need to make sure we have a governor who understands what’s happening to real people every single day in our state,” Charlie Crist said during his campaigning Monday.

Fried was working to appeal to her voters Tuesday at Proof Brewery.

“I’m the only one in this primary that has won statewide as a democrat. I’m the one who’s been taking on Desantis for the last three and half years and not backing down on any fight,” shared Fried.

Monday, Charlie Crist stopped in Tallahassee to speak to voters and Tuesday, Nikki Fried did the same.

The state’s Ag Commissioner was riding high touting the results from a just released poll from the University of North Florida, which showed Fried leading the race for the first time. But experts say, polling is not always reliable.

“I certainly wouldn’t stake my job on it in any stretch. Particularly one poll, particularly one relative small poll like this,” explained FSU Professor Emeritus of Political Science Carol Weissert. “Generally what we look for is trends in polls and the problem is that we don’t have a lot of polling on this race.”

The candidates stances on hot-topics like abortion could make a difference come election day.

“The women of our state need to know they’ve got somebody in that governor’s office who’s never going to waver,” Fried shares. “Who’s never going to back down and who’s going to continue to fight for them.”

Crist, discussing his plans to address abortion as well.

“I’m committed to doing everything I can to protect the woman’s right to choose here in the sunshine state and I’ve said on the first day of the Crist administration I will sign an executive order doing exactly that,” he explained.

Weissert believes the primaries can go either way and that either candidate will be strong, but the result may come down to undecided voters and women.

“And generally undecided voters kind of split about 50-50, but if they don’t they can really make a difference,” broke down Weissert. “And if you’re looking at maybe a fourth of the people who are polled who are undecided, that would be huge.”

Both Fried and Crist are hoping their efforts down the stretch will impact the only poll that matters on August 23rd.

“And I believe in doing what’s right and I believe in doing the right thing,” exclaimed Crist.

“And I am willing to fight, and I do not back down,” Fried proclaimed.

Early voting began on Saturday across the state and will go until Sunday August 21st.

Mail in ballots can be turned in through 7 pm on primary day, August 23rd and of course polls will be open for anyone who wishes to vote in person that day as well.

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