Fox News | Serafin Gomez

Marco Rubio has no scheduled meeting with Palin, who will be in Jacksonville, Orlando and The Villages retirement community on Tuesday, but the former Florida House speaker’s spokesman said the campaign would fully appreciate support from the former Alaska governor and best-selling author.

*Gainesville Sun | Crist faces a tougher primary as luster dulls

Tampa Bay Online | CATHERINE DOLINSKI

Democratic candidate Alex Sink takes the fundraising lead in the 2010 race for governor with nearly $1.3 million during the last quarter and $2.4 million overall.

Those numbers beat out Republican opponent Bill McCollum, both in terms of quarterly and overall contribution totals. McCollum, the state’s attorney general, raised $1.05 million during the April 1 through June 30 fundraising quarter.

Roll Call | John McArdle

As they continue to mull endorsing former state Speaker Marco Rubio in Florida’s Republican Senate primary, the Club for Growth released a new poll Tuesday that showed Gov. Charlie Crist (R) as the clear frontrunner in this early stage of the race.

But Club for Growth executive director David Keating said Tuesday that the survey also showed that Rubio has room for growth while Crist’s support is “softer than what a lot of people are assuming.”

Pensacola News Journal | Bill Cotterell

The Mason-Dixon Florida Poll, conducted last week among 625 registered voters, indicated 51 percent support for Crist — compared to 23 percent for Rubio. But that was largely a factor of Crist being far better known statewide than the former West Miami legislator.

Among Republicans who recognized both names, Crist’s lead was 33 percent to 31 percent. With an error margin of 6 percent, and 36 percent of GOP voters saying they are undecided, the figures were encouraging for Rubio.

Miami Herald | No Author Listed

Gov. Charlie Crist has vetoed two bills that would have provided public record exemptions.

One of the measures (HB 7093) he vetoed Wednesday would have exempted “proprietary business information” obtained from a telecommunications or broadband company by the Department of Management Services.

Miami Herald | THE ASSOCIATED PRESS

TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Former Arkansas Gov. Mike Huckabee is endorsing Marco Rubio for Senate.

Huckabee, who was popular among conservatives during last year’s Republican presidential primary, said, “I’ve never seen a more energetic, articulate, principled conservative as Marco Rubio.”

Politico | Charles Mahtesian

The Club for Growth, the bane of Republican moderates, has taken another shot at Florida GOP Gov. Charlie Crist, this time nominating him for its Comrade of the Month Award for May.

Kendrick Meek (D): 29 (26)
Charlie Crist (R): 59 (60)
Kendrick Meek (D): 30 (24)
Marco Rubio (R): 31 (26)
(MoE: ±2.8%)

Charlie Crist (R): 59 (54)
Marco Rubio (R): 22 (4)
Other: NA (33)
(MoE: ±4.5%)

Data from Strategic Vision

H/T Swing State Project

Tampa Bay Online | WILLIAM MARCH

TAMPA - The state Republican Party, which had hoped to clear the field to give Attorney General Bill McCollum an uncontested nomination for governor, now finds itself with at least two potential challengers, veteran legislator Dan Webster and state Sen. Paula Dockery.

With most of the fundraising clout of the state party behind him, McCollum would be a clear front-runner in a primary contest.

“Neither would be a major threat, but there’s potential,” said retired University of South Florida political scientist Darryl Paulson.

Dockery and Webster would appeal to parts of the GOP primary electorate, likely ending hopes for McCollum to get a free primary ride and campaign from the start against his likely Democratic opponent, Alex Sink.

Political Ticker | CNN

WASHINGTON (CNN) – Florida Gov. Charlie Crist has rolled out a succession of endorsements from national Republicans since announcing his entrance into the 2010 Senate race.

Now his Republican primary rival, former Florida House speaker Marco Rubio, has a national endorsement of his own from a conservative heavyweight: Mike Huckabee.