The campaign for Andrew Gillum, the Democratic candidate for governor of Florida, confirms some voters have received a racially charged robocall mocking the candidate, who is black.
Gillum, the Tallahassee Mayor who was a surprise selection during the primary, will face U.S. Rep. Ron DeSantis, the Republican candidate, in the fall.
Potential voters started getting the robocall, which features monkey and jungle noises and mocks Gillum, two days ago, The New York Times reports.
On the call, someone says, “I is Andrew Gillum,” and continues to mock the candidate while asking voters for support, the Times reports. At the end of the call, it indicates it is paid for by The Road to Power, an Idaho-based white supremacist group.
Gillum's campaign said they've only heard of the calls in Tallahassee so far.
During an interview with CNN, Gillum, who would be Florida's first black governor if elected, said the call was deeply regrettable.
"I mean, on the day right after I secured the Democratic nomination, we had to deal with some of the dog whistles directly from my opponent," Gillum said to CNN.
DeSantis told voters not to "monkey up" the election after Gillum's primary win.
DeSantis said the remark Gillum is referring to is not a racist dog whistle. He also decried the robocall, calling it repugnant and disrespectful.
UCF political science professor Aubrey Jewett believes the robocall will end up backfiring on those responsible for it.
He expected the race to become racially charged, "but I certainly didn't think it was going to happen so quickly; I mean, basically it was a day after the primary election."
About the Author
