Andrew Gillum deserved better.
In the closest election in Florida’s 178 year history, Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum lost to Tea Party congressman and cofounder of the House Freedom Caucus Ron DeSantis by 32,463 votes in 2018.
The 0.4% margin triggered an automatic recount, which quickly became the subject of intense scrutiny.
The design of the ballot was blamed for the discrepancy between votes cast for Senate and Governor. Delayed deliveries of mail-in ballots in mostly Democratic areas resulted in more than 8,000 votes being tossed out.
The real controversy revealed itself years later, only visible with hindsight: The plan to disrupt the 2020 election was hatched and tested in Florida in 2018.
Questions about the integrity of the election started in south Florida not long after, when then-President Donald Trump said he interrupted recount proceedings to “stop the election from being stolen” from DeSantis.
Rick Scott blamed voter fraud and Trump quickly echoed those unsubstantiated clai…
