Most of the United States will have to wait until early November this year in order to elect for a candidate to the U.S. House of Representatives. In the 19th congressional district of Florida, however, a special election will take place just three months from now – on April 13, 2010. On Groundhog Day, the district will experience a day of primary elections. This special, early election is taking place because the district’s incumbent, Robert Wexler, has retired to go work for a non-profit organization. There are three candidates competing for the Democratic nomination to the seat: Ben Graber, Jose Ruiz and Ted Deutch.

There’s a great deal at stake in these elections – more than just control over a seat in Congress. The future of Florida’s coastline hangs in the balance.

Because Florida’s beautiful, clean beaches are the state’s primary natural resource, many Florida politicians have been eager to prevent further offshore drilling for oil, which, when spilled can turn a white sand beach into an ugly patch of asphalt. There are some politicians in Florida, however, who are just as eager to get big financial contributions from companies that profit from offshore drilling.

Given the importance of the issue to Florida votes, it’s curious that Ben Graber doesn’t mention the issue at all on his campaign web site. Graber apparently doesn’t have any thoughts on oil, drilling, or even energy in general that he thinks are important enough to share with voters in writing.

Ted Deutch makes a very clear statement in opposition to the expansion of offshore drilling along Florida’s coasts, however. He states, “I will continue to stand with Florida’s Congressional leaders in opposition to efforts to open Florida’s waters to oil drilling. In the Florida Senate, I recently sponsored a bill to create an offshore drilling taskforce to ensure the necessary precautions are taken to protect Florida’s coastline.”

Jose Ruiz, on the other hand, sides with those who want to see more oil drilling rigs along Florida’s shores, “along with incentives”. He is willing to ignore the frequent oil spills that take place in association with offshore drilling, and the sometimes dramatic blowouts, such as last year’s Timor Sea disaster, while spread crude oil out into the ocean for 74 days while the drilling company who owned the faulty rig there, was powerless to stop the flow, even with all of the most up to date equipment.

For Floridians who want to see Florida’s coasts keep contributing to their state’s economy, Ted Deutch seems to be the clear choice in the Democratic primary next week.