Rick Scott Edges Alex Sink in Florida Governor Race

BRADENTON -- Rick Scott was written off when he was trailing Bill McCollum by 10 points for most of the summer, despite having spent $50 million of his fortune to build his brand. Scott overcame that deficit and scored the upset, but the experts still gave him little chance against a heavily entrenched political incumbent like Alex Sink.

The darling of the Florida Democratic party since becoming the first female CEO and the only Democratic member of the Florida cabinet, Sink had real name recognition and the backing of the Democratic National Committee plus the support of icons like former president Bill Clinton. Early polls did not look good for Scott, but just like in the primary, he successfully campaigned against his opponent, succeeding in tying Sink to unpopular Democratic policies and labeling her an ”Obama liberal.“

Going into Election Day, Scott and Sink were in a deadlock that was going to come down to turnout and it would appear that the tide of populist anger and incumbent backlash swept up the victory for the Tea Party endorsed candidate. Scott, 57, has promised to create 700,000 jobs in Florida over the next 7 years, while phasing out the corporate income tax and crafting business-friendly tort reform. Sink would have been the first female governor in the state's history. Democrats have not won the office since Lawton Chiles' last election in 1994.