Out on Saturday's AP wire service was this story about the Florida Governor's race and its impact on stem-cell research in the state. You gotta love the Web. I found this in the San Jose Mercury News. (Yes, they're reading about us in California.)

It seems 3 out of 4 of Florida's top candidates for Governor support embryonic stem-cell research. Republican Charlie Crist, and Democrats Jim Davis and Rod Smith all support the state paying for research. Odd man out is Republican Tom Gallagher, who "sides with those who decry the practice as immoral because it involves the destruction of certain embryos, which opponents argue is the destruction of life."

Tom might want to reflect on the August 1 Rasmussen poll which shows Crist (whose support for the research is lukewarm but still there) leading Davis by five points, 47% to 42%, and leading Smith 48% to 35%. Meanwhile, Democrat Davis leads Gallagher 44% to 41%. Gallagher is losing percentage points to Smith, but still leads him by five.

Embryonic stem-cell research may not make or break this election, but Mr. Gallagher should consider that a clear majority of citizens favor this research. In a recent Miami Herald poll: "Seventy-nine percent of Democrats polled support federal funding for the research, compared with 51 percent of Republicans." Those numbers are significant enough to make any candidate take a second look, especially since the state electorate is deeply divided on almost every other issue.

If you live (or lived) in Florida, how strongly would this issue influence your vote?