Crist, Davis Win Florida Gubernatorial Primaries; Harris Wins Republican Senate Primary

Florida Attorney General Charlie Crist (R) -- who has said he would sign a bill into law that bans abortions with exceptions in cases of rape, incest or if the life of the woman is in danger -- on Tuesday won the Republican gubernatorial primary over state Chief Financial Officer Tom Gallagher, the New York Times reports. U.S. Rep. Jim Davis (D), who has said he strongly opposes banning abortion, won the Democratic primary for governor over state Sen. Rod Smith (Goodnough, New York Times, 9/6). Davis in March criticized Crist's stance on an abortion ban, saying, "Politicians should stay out of the difficult, personal decisions about life and death that Floridians and their families face every day" (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 3/27). Crist -- who described his views on abortion rights as "pro-choice" in a 1998 U.S. Senate race against former Sen. Bob Graham (D) -- has said he would sign an abortion ban but would not urge the state Legislature to implement one. He also has said that he does not support a proposal by Gallagher that the state should require a 24-hour waiting period before a physician can perform an abortion so women can receive counseling on alternatives to the procedure (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 8/21). According to the Miami Herald, Crist "gamely" held off Gallagher's assertions in two debates that he was a "liberal" who supports some abortion rights and embryonic stem cell research (Reinhard et al., Miami Herald, 9/6).

Katherine Harris Wins Senate Primary
U.S. Rep. Katherine Harris (R-Fla.) on Tuesday won the Republican primary for U.S. Senate and in November will run against incumbent U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson (D-Fla.), the Los Angeles Times reports (Williams, Los Angeles Times, 9/6). Harris beat attorney Will McBride, retired Adm. LeRoy Collins and developer Peter Monroe, all of whom filed to enter the race just before the May deadline, to win the Republican nomination (New York Times, 9/6). Harris last month in an interview with the Florida Baptist Witness, said, "If you're not electing Christians, then in essence you are going to legislate sin," such as abortion rights. She added that when Christians elect non-Christian leaders, and they "say abortion is permissible ... then average citizens who are not Christians, because they don't know better," are "le[d] astray, and it's wrong." Harris in the interview also talked about limiting abortion rights except in cases of rape, incest or when the life of the mother is in danger; supporting abstinence-only education; and opposing human embryonic stem cell research (Kaiser Daily Women's Health Policy Report, 8/28).

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