Lost in the shadows of the dramatic, competitive battles for governor and U.S. Senate, the two major party nominees in the attorney general’s race nevertheless have begun to attack one another and stake out positions they hope will lead to victory in November.

Because one of them will be the 18th lieutenant governor of the great state of Florida, we offer our sincerest condolences to Rod Smith and Jennifer Carroll.

Gov. Charlie Crist, who is running for the U.S. Senate without party affiliation, was in Quincy Thursday to highlight a change in the Florida Discount Drug Card program. There will now be greater access to the program through tear-off brochures with cards attached as well as a virtual card program …

While he may be an icon among Florida Democrats, former Gov. and U.S. Sen. Bob Graham blasted the Obama administration on Wednesday for agreeing to expand offshore drilling in March, before the oil spill in the Gulf. Currently serving as co-chairman of the National Commission on the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill and Offshore Drilling, Graham said the president should have consulted with federal environmental officials before agreeing to expand drilling …

Pam Bondi, a little-known Hillsborough County prosecutor just four months ago, triumphed over two more established party rivals to win the Republican nomination for attorney general.

This is it -- primary Election Day in Florida -- in a state of increasing national importance and political vigor. As the rest of America watches -- for that matter, as Florida intently watches itself -- voters go to the polls to decide who will be their party's nominees in November’s general election.

No Hard Plans Yet for Special Session

Senate President-designate Mike Haridopolos said Senate and House leaders are continuing to talk about a potential special session to deal with the economic impact of the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, but declined to commit to any plans.

Even though Gov. Charlie Crist hand-picked him to serve as his running mate in 2006, Lt. Gov. Jeff Kottkamp on Wednesday endorsed Crist's chief opponent in the U.S. Senate race, former House Speaker Marco Rubio.

The front-runner in the Republican race for attorney general is none of the three candidates in the contest, according to a Sunshine State News Poll released Wednesday. It is "Undecided."

In conjunction with a Harrisburg, Pa.-based public-opinion polling firm, Sunshine State News will release the results and analyses of its first two Florida Republican primary polls on Tuesday and Wednesday.

Locked in a close primary battle with a little over a month until the primary election, the three candidates fighting it out for the Republican nomination for attorney general announced late Wednesday that they will hold a debate Saturday, July 31.

The Republican Party of Florida announced on Wednesday that their chairman, Sen. John Thrasher, R-Jacksonville, would be hosting a dinner in September at Lake Buena Vista with the GOP candidates for statewide office and former RNC boss and possible 2012 presidential hopeful, Gov.

Even though the 2010 elections are still being waged, speculation has already begun about which Republicans will look to challenge U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson in 2012. The venerable national opinion journal The New Republic ran a piece on energy bills in the Senate and offered an aside building up current U.S. Sen. George LeMieux possibly taking on Nelson. With his recent letter to Nelson on national issues, buzz is building that incoming Senate President Mike Haridopolos, R-Merritt Island, could also be looking at running for the U.S. Senate come 2012 ...

Dusting off a site that hasn't been used in 11 years, Space Florida won approval to operate Space Launch Complex 46 for commercial liftoffs.