Tallahassee mayor Andrew Gillum on Tuesday proved victorious over Gwen Graham, a former Congressman, in Florida’s Democratic primary election for governor. The progressive candidate’s win is widely seen as an unexpected upset to the state’s established politicians.
Gillum, 39, is the first Black candidate to win a nomination for state office in Florida, according to BuzzFeed News. He will run for governor against Rep. Ron DeSantis, an ally of President Donald Trump who ran an ad where he encouraged his infant daughter to “build the wall!” with toys.
Vox reports that Gillum has proposed raising the state’s corporate tax to benefit education, raising the minimum wage for workers to $15 per hour, and national single-payer healthcare.
On Twitter, progressives including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who endorsed Gillum, congratulated him on his primary win.
Congratulations to @AndrewGillum on his victory. Tonight, Floridians joined Andrew in standing up and demanding real change and showed our nation what is possible when we stand together. Let's make history this November and make Andrew Gillum the next Governor of Florida.
— Bernie Sanders (@BernieSanders) August 29, 2018
Congratulations to @AndrewGillum on his historic victory in tonight's primary. He’s a strong progressive leader and will make a great Governor of Florida!
— Kamala Harris (@KamalaHarris) August 29, 2018
Gillum isn’t the first progressive to take a primary in a surprising upset. In June, 28-year-old Democratic Socialist candidate Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez beat out incumbent Rep. Joe Crowley (D-N.Y.) in the primary race to the New York House.
Congratulations, @AndrewGillum!
— Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (@AOC) August 29, 2018
The progressive movement is transforming the country – and he proved that again tonight.
Gillum ran on Medicare for All, Legalizing Marijuana, #AbolishICE & more.
Thank you, Florida voters!
On to November 💪🏽💜 https://t.co/8keyzxVmcf
H/T Vox