Daily Business Report: Debate challenge makes AG primary more contentious

With less than a month left until the primary, attorney general candidate Dan Gelber is challenging Democratic opponent Dave Aronberg to 11 debates in major media markets — in other words, a debate every two to three days.

Aronberg, who is locked in a fierce battle with Gelber, calls the request "a publicity stunt." He claims Gelber sent his request to the media the same day quarterly fundraising numbers were released to deflect attention from Aronberg’s financial lead. He raised $264,000 in the latest quarter compared with $164,000 for Gelber.

"I believe that our campaigns were engaged in honest discussion about the debate process, so I was a bit surprised by the e-mail you sent to us and the press corps calling for 11 debates in the final month of the campaign — a number you know is unrealistic and smacks of a political stunt," Aronberg stated in a letter to Gelber.

Aronberg also called for at least one debate to be held in Pensacola, which has been hurt by the BP oil spill, as well as in Tampa and Orlando, where neither South Florida resident "is well-known."

Gelber denies his request is a publicity stunt.

"I don’t know what he’s talking about," he said. "We just thought it would be a good idea to have debates in the 11 major media markets. I mean, we don’t have to debate if he doesn’t want to."

Each candidate has raised a little more than $1 million heading into the Aug. 24 primary.

In his debate letter to Aronberg, Gelber’s campaign manager Christian Ulvert cited "limited resources" for both campaigns and an inability "to saturate the airwaves like other statewide campaigns."

So far, the candidates have participated in numerous multirace debates but faced off one-on-one only once in Orlando last year.

One issue that is sure to come up in any debate — Gelber’s recent departure from Akerman Senterfitt, which represents BP in Florida spill litigation. Aronberg’s accusation that Gelber would have to recuse himself from BP litigation if elected attorney general has turned what was once a sleepy race into one of the most contentious of the state Cabinet races.

For his part, Gelber will be sure to attack his West Palm Beach opponent’s experience. Gelber has called the Greenspoon Marder attorney a "junior lawyer" and career politician.