From USAToday

MELBOURNE, Fla. — The theory was that Barack Obama’s election as president in 2008 signaled a new era for black candidates trying to win statewide contests for senator or governor.

Now, Rep. Kendrick Meek is struggling with the reality.

In Florida, the 43-year-old African-American congressman, long the presumptive Democratic nominee in the state’s tumultuous Senate race, is trying to fend off a surprise primary challenge from a Palm Beach billionaire and running a distant third in general-election matchups against a darling of the anti-tax “Tea Party” movement and the state’s popular governor.

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