(Jewish Group) South Florida Jewish voters become key, targeted demographic in governor's race

(THIS IS THE JEWISH GROUP! RESPECT!!)

In a crucial swing state where the most important political races are often decided by the slimmest of margins, South Florida's Jewish voters have become a key demographic in the battle for Florida governor.

A contentious campaign dominated by identity politics has been peppered with cries of anti-Semitism as GOP nominee Ron DeSantis highlights opponent Andrew Gillum's ties to organizations critical of Israel. On Thursday, amid increasingly rancorous rhetoric, POLITICO reported that voters with Jewish surnames received text messages repeating comments Gillum's running mate, Chris King, made 20 years ago about being "nailed to the cross" by the mostly Jewish editorial board of Harvard's student newspaper.

Gillum's campaign quickly condemned the texts as "smear tactics." A spokesman for DeSantis — who has dealt with allegations of racism and early in the campaign disavowed offensive robocalls mocking Gillum by a Neo-Nazi group — retorted that the Democratic nominee "should spend more time addressing why [King] said them and less time about how voters are finding out about them."

The back-and-forth is unlikely to be the last on the topic, because Florida's Jewish vote, most of which is located below the northern boundary of Palm Beach County, could be crucial to the final decision on who becomes the state's next governor.

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