Florida election

Congressman Al Lawson, a Tallahassee Democrat whose district was overhauled as part of the once-a-decade reapportionment process, helped launch this year’s candidate qualifying period Monday by filing paperwork to challenge Panhandle Republican incumbent Neal Dunn.

This election cycle will be like no other in Florida history. It is the first time Democrats have fielded a full slate of candidates in almost every race for the legislature – even in places where history suggests Democrats have little or no chance of winning.

It had looked like Florida was headed for a recount for most of election night because of the razor-thin margin between Barack Obama and Mitt Romney. And…