A vote for Thrasher is a vote for someone

According to information obtained by Historic City News, overseas ballots have already been mailed to St Johns County voters and, in just one week, domestic absentee ballots for the general election in November will be mailed. However, in the race for Florida Senator Seat 6, between Democrat Kathleen Trued, Greg Feldman who is running without party affiliation, and Republican incumbent John Thrasher, one of the names, if selected, will not be who you are actually voting for.

Today, on a vote of 11-2, the Florida State University Board of Trustees named St Augustine Florida Senator John Thrasher as the school’s next president.

Unfortunately, or fortunately depending on your point-of-view, the university system’s Board of Governors needs to ratify the Thrasher selection. They do not meet until November, so Thrasher is staying in the race until the end.

The Board of Governors has never refused to endorse the selection made by a local university board, according to an Associated Press wire. That means that the complicated process that involves a closed election by members of the Republican Party of Florida and it’s Executive Committees in each of the counties in the Senatorial District, will not occur.

Instead, assuming the Board of Governors confirms the Board of Trustees selection, and assuming that Thrasher defeats his Democrat and NPA challengers, a special election will be held and the voters will decide from a new field.

“I am honored that the FSU Board of Trustees has selected me to be the next President of Florida State University; however, this is just one more step in a long process which, under Florida law, must end with the approval of the Board of Governors,” Thrasher told local Historic City News reporters. “In the meantime, I intend to continue to campaign for re-election to the Senate. I will continue to carry out my commitment to the people of my district, and, if I am ultimately selected to lead FSU, this will allow the voters to select who will be the next Senator from the 6th district.”

The choice of Thrasher came despite opposition from many faculty members and students on campus who contended he isn’t qualified for the post. Thrasher was chosen over three academics, pushing aside objections from those who cited his lack of educational credentials. He recently drew criticism after he sidestepped questions about climate change and evolution during a campus forum.

At the Board, however, the St. Augustine state senator’s supporters say his political connections and clout could help FSU in its quest to move into the ranks of the nation’s top research universities. Thrasher vowed that he would help the university get more money to boost faculty salaries.

The 70-year-old Thrasher graduated from FSU in 1965 with a bachelor’s degree in business and later received his law degree from the school. In the Legislature, he helped win approval for the university’s medical school, which opened in 2001. In addition to politics, he worked as a lawyer and a lobbyist. Thrasher also spent four years on FSU’s board.

During his final interview, Thrasher maintained he would reach out to his opponents if selected. He also said he shared the same goal as others at helping improve FSU.

FSU has been without a president since Eric Barron left in April to take the top post at Penn State University. The process to hire a successor has been bumpy ever since Thrasher emerged as a candidate. Initially FSU planned to interview him ahead of all candidates but that created a backlash and ultimately led to the search being delayed.