Former Florida Governor and current junior U.S. Senator of Florida Rick Scott (R-FL) is running for re-election in 2024. [Note: Scott was elected with 50.1% of the vote in 2018; he defeated Democratic incumbent Bill Nelson by approximately 10,000 votes.]
This time around Scott faces two newly declared Republican candidates for his seat: reality TV star Patricia Krentcil (a.k.a. Tan Mom) and lawyer and businessman Keith Gross, who claims Scott has “accomplished absolutely nothing in five years in the U.S. Senate.”
When asked by The Hill why he’s running against Scott, Gross said: “It’s because he’s an absolute ineffective crook, basically. If I thought there was an awesome senator in that seat… I would be looking at a different seat. Where can I make a difference?”
Gross’s “crook” reference appears to be a shot at the $1.7 billion Medicare fraud fine leveled at Scott’s former healthcare company.
The number one question I get asked is "Why are you running”
— Keith Gross (@KeithGrossFL) July 24, 2023
It all comes down to one thing… honesty.
I’m running for the United States Senate because we deserve honest representation in Washington that will put Floridians first.
I’m tired of watching politicians get rich by… pic.twitter.com/BP7nbZlPB3
Gross, who has endorsed former President Donald Trump‘s 2024 campaign for president (Scott has yet to announce who he’s endorsing), claims he and Scott share one thing in common: money. According to Gross, he and Scott are both worth “just north of $250 million.”
[Note: Scott reportedly deployed $64 million of his own money during his 2018 race.]
And Gross is willing to spend a lot of that pile of cash on the 2024 race. He said: “If I have to spend $20, $30 million to get the message out of my own cash, I’m not putting that off the table. I mean, I’m gonna keep adding to the pile as much as I need to to get this job done.”
