caldwell

Caldwell Concedes Ag Commissioner Race to Fried

Dan Florida, Industry News Release

Republican Matt Caldwell pointed to a need for political “sanity” and a “peaceful transfer of power” Monday as he conceded the race for Florida agriculture commissioner to Fort Lauderdale lawyer Nikki Fried, the only Democrat to win statewide this year. Caldwell, a real-estate appraiser from North Fort Myers who has served the past eight years in the Florida House, said …

fried

Fried Maintains Hold in Ag Race After Manual Recount

Dan Florida, Industry News Release

Former medical-marijuana lobbyist Nikki Fried is on the verge of being the only Florida Democrat to capture a statewide win, gaining votes over Republican state Rep. Matt Caldwell in the race for agriculture commissioner after a manual recount was completed Sunday. The manual recount also had no effect on the outcome of three razor-thin legislative races, in which Democrat Janet …

redistricting plan

Two Statewide Races Go to Manual Recounts

Dan Florida, Industry News Release

Floridians will have to wait a little longer to get official word about who will be the state’s next agriculture commissioner and who will serve in the U.S. Senate. Secretary of State Ken Detzner announced Thursday that manual recounts of “overvotes” and “undervotes” will be required in the two statewide races, as the margins between candidates were below 0.25 percent …

caldwell

Fried Holds Narrow Lead Going Into Recount

Dan Florida, Industry News Release

Nikki Fried, the Democratic candidate for agriculture commissioner, led Republican Matt Caldwell by more than 3,000 votes as a recount neared in their race for the Cabinet seat, according to numbers posted on the state Division of Elections website. As of 10 a.m. Saturday, Fried had 4,025,824 votes, while Caldwell had 4,022,704. In all, 8,048,528 votes had been tallied, with …

agriculture

Fried Tops Caldwell By Narrow Margin in Ag Commissioner Race

Dan Florida, Industry News Release

After trailing on election night, Democrat Nikki Fried held a slight lead Friday morning in her race with Republican Matt Caldwell to become state agriculture commissioner. With votes continuing to be counted, Fried held a 2,915-vote lead as of 7 a.m. Friday, according to the state Division of Elections website. With 8,046,381 votes tallied in the Cabinet race, Fried had …

caldwell

Caldwell Claims Victory in Agriculture Commissioner Race

Dan Florida, Industry News Release

Republican state Rep. Matt Caldwell declared victory Tuesday night as he held a narrow advantage in the contest to succeed term-limited Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam. Caldwell, a real-estate appraiser from North Fort Myers, gave an acceptance speech from an election watch party, according to WGCU Public Media. As of 11:30 p.m., Caldwell led Democrat Nikki Fried by about 41,000 votes …

caldwell

Fried, Caldwell Face Off Over Medical Marijuana, Water

Dan Florida, Industry News Release

Democrat Nikki Fried, a medical-marijuana lobbyist, had to defend her desire to move the state’s oversight of medical marijuana into the agency she wants to run. Her Republican opponent, state Rep. Matt Caldwell, was questioned about his support for a bill that delayed for 20 years an unmet deadline to reduce nutrients flowing into Lake Okeechobee. Fried and Caldwell — …

caldwell

Caldwell, Fried Square Off to Replace Putnam

Dan Florida, Industry News Release

A state lawmaker from North Fort Myers who is a real-estate appraiser and an attorney from Fort Lauderdale who lobbies for the medical-marijuana industry are competing in next month’s election to replace term-limited Florida Agriculture Commissioner Adam Putnam. Unlike candidates in races for other Cabinet seats, Republican state Rep. Matt Caldwell and Democrat Nikki Fried haven’t completely avoided each other …

caldwell

Agriculture Candidates Set to Debate

Dan Florida

The two candidates vying to become Florida next agriculture commissioner — state Rep. Matt Caldwell, a Republican from North Fort Myers, and Fort Lauderdale Democrat Nikki Fried — have agreed to an early Sunday morning debate next month. Caldwell and Fried are seeking to replace term-limited Adam Putnam in the Cabinet position that oversees the Department of Agriculture and Consumer …

caldwell

Caldwell Knows Importance of Florida Agriculture

Dan Florida

When the August primaries were over, it left Republican candidate Matt Caldwell and Democratic candidate Nikki Fried left to battle it out for Florida’s Commissioner of Agriculture. During the annual Florida Fruit & Vegetable Association Conference this week, Caldwell talked with AgNet Media’s Josh McGill about his campaign. Caldwell Knows Importance of Florida Agriculture