“I learned at an early age about riding groves late at night, checking pumps and checking temperatures and assessing the damage the next morning and moving forward,” he said.
He talked about raising his prized horned Hereford bull, named “Georgia Boy,” for a 4-H Club project in a pen that once existed a few blocks from the courthouse.
“Hard work. Responsibility. Perseverance. These are common values,” Putnam said. “But in our society today, they are all too rare.”
How well Putnam’s agrarian roots resonate with Florida’s urban voters remains to be seen. But talking to reporters after his speech, Putnam drew connections between Florida’s diverse regions.
“As you know, Palm Beach is one of our top ag-producing counties in the state, and so is Miami-Dade. It’s not us against them,” Putnam said. “We have an opportunity to diversify our economy and build on our pillars of agriculture, tourism and construction and create new opportunities so that young people who grow up in a town like Bartow don’t have to leave to find good work.”
