- Incumbent GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis hold a double-digit lead over Democrat rival Charlie Crist.
- The release Monday of an Education Department report about historically low children’s tests scores as a consequence of the pandemic resulted in elected officials across the country pointing fingers, and the debate was no exception, with Crist questioning DeSantis policies on keeping schools open or locked down.
- Addressing inflation, DeSantis highlighted the state’s “largest budget surplus in history” and said it would help fund a large-scale tax cuts in the state. Crist retorted that DeSantis should have passed a similar effort the year prior, to which DeSantis replied that Crist had passed the state’s largest tax increase.
- The debate was originally scheduled for Oct. 12, but had to be postponed because of Hurricane Ian.
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In Gov Debate, Crist Uses Florida’s Prosperity As DeSantis Attack Line
When the moderators asked about the escalating cost of living in Florida and attributed it to so many people moving to the state under DeSantis's leadership. Crist repeatedly attempted to pin the blame on DeSantis for rising costs of energy and property insurance.
