Mr. Rubio is not a flawless candidate. He has refused to release all records involving a Republican Party credit card, which he used at times for personal expenses when he was House leader.

Nevertheless, at 39, Mr. Rubio has the potential to be the kind of statesman Floridians can be proud to call a native son — much like another conservative, former Sen. Connie Mack, who became a defender of Haitian immigrants’ rights and led bipartisan initiatives that doubled federal spending on bio-medical research.

Like a lot of voters, we’ve struggled with the choices in this race, and our pick may surprise some readers. We do not agree with many of Mr. Rubio’s positions — certainly not the far-right stance he has taken on immigration or his position against healthcare reform.

Republican leaders in the Sunshine State are fretting that a deal may be in the works to get Democratic nominee Kendrick Meek out of the Florida Senate race in order to boost Charlie Crist’s flagging chances of beating Republican Marco Rubio.

Across the state, groups such as Palm Beach Democrats for Crist and Tampa Democrats for Crist are emerging. Republican fears are further stoked by the almost universal acknowledgment that Mr. Meek has almost no chance to win. Statewide polling has his support in the teens and falling. His money coffers are all but dry. Democrats had hoped that when Mr. Crist abandoned the GOP for an independent run, it would split the Republican vote and propel Mr. Meek into the winner’s circle. With four weeks to go, no one believes that now. Mr. Meek, who is African-American, polls strongly only with black voters.

Republican Marco Rubio continues to hold a double-digit lead over independent candidate Charlie Crist in Florida’s contentious race for the U.S. Senate.

The latest Rasmussen Reports telephone survey of Likely Voters in Florida finds the two candidates neck-and-neck again this month, with Rubio earning 36% support and Crist, the state’s current Republican governor, capturing 34% of the vote.

On Tuesday, May 5,  Marc Rubio from Florida announced that his he is officaly putting his hat into the campaign for the United States Senate.  If you want to know more go to his website at  http://marcorubio.com/