Who will Rick Scott appoint as chief financial officer to succeed Jeff Atwater as he steps down for a job at Florida Atlantic University? We turned to our trusty Florida Insiders for their predictions and the more than 170 politicos participating in the latest Florida Insider Poll were all over the map/

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8 Months Ago

Results of the unscientific survey (Rounded to nearest whole number):

Pat Neal 22%
Carlos Lopez-Cantera 15%
Tom Grady 15%
Joe Gruters 12%
Tom Lee 11 %
Other: 8%
Lenny Curry 7%
Jack Latvala 6%
Will Weatherford 4%
Jeff Brandes 1%
Teresa Jacobs 1%

"Blood is thicker than water as they say so Scott is likely to pick a friend who is at least minimally qualified (Grady seems to fit the bill the best)," said one registered independent. This might be good for Republicans politically in the US Senate race if it helps Scott score some political victories on the Cabinet to make him look like a stronger leader."

Another Republican said the edge goes to Jacksonville's mayor and former state GOP chairman: "The CFO job belongs to Lenny Curry, but only if he actually wants it. He's been an unrelenting ally for Rick Scott over the years, which means he'll be a great ticket-sharer in 2018.  Plus, he's a proven winner, he's got the right financial background, and few if any will outwork him."

And which choice would most help the GOP politically? Our establishment-heavy Insiders - political operatives, fundraisers, lobbyists, academics - leaned heavily to former Florida House Speaker Will Weatherford.

Will Weatherford: 31%
Carlos Lopez-Cantera 17%
Other 11%
Jack Latvala 10%
Lenny Curry 9%
Teresa Jacobs 9%
Pat Neal 6%
Joe Gruters 4%
Jeff Brandes 3%
Tom Grady 1%

"With CFO and AG departing, Governor Scott may have more influence over the future of the state than anyone ever expected," said a Republican.

This week's Florida Insiders included:

JC Planas, Fred Karlinsky, Rich Heffley, Christian Ziegler, Rodney Barreto, Jason Altmire, Jon Ausman, Julia Woodward, Chris Kise, Javier Manjerres, Chris Hartline, Ben Pollara, Ron Sachs, Joshua Karp, Roly Marante, Darrick D. McGhee, Pablo Diaz, Dan McLaughlin, Stephen Shiver, Erik Kirk, Alex Patton, Eric Zichella, Kathy Mears, Alex Heckler, Bernie Campbell, Kevin Cate, Christina Johnson, Richard DeNapoli, Geoffrey Becker, John French, Bill Lee, Cory Tilley, Doc Dockery, Kevin King, Meredith O'Rourke, Daniel Smith, Rick Wilson, Jim Rimes, Eric Jotkoff, Matthew Isbell, Patrick Slevin, Jeff Hartley, Paula Dockery, Joe Gruters, Ryan Tyson, Andy Ford, Screven Watson, John Morgan, Jeff Johnson, Mike Fasano, Doug Kaplan, Richard Crotty, Scott Barnhart, Brad Coker, Justin Day, Steve Schale, Rich Ramos, Jason Rosenberg, Bill Helmich, Stephen Bittel, Alia Faraj-Johnson, Alan Becker, Ron Pierce, Susannah Randolph, Susie Wiles, Jim Davis, Amber Stoner, David Johnson, Nancy Texeira, George Riley, Marc Reichelderfer, Jim Cherry, John Dowless, Travis Blanton, Matt Bryan, David Rancourt, Jorge Pedraza, Beth Leytham, Wayne Bertsch, Cesar Fernandez, Chip Case, Ron Gunzburger, David Bishop, Jon Costello, Steve Geller, Jamie Miller, Jim Horne, Dean Cannon, Tom Gaitens, Patrick Manteiga, Leslie Wimes, Brian Hughes, Van Poole, Zachariah Zachariah, Pat Neal, Susan Smith, Mike Hamby, Ashley Bauman, Tom Alte, Ellyn Bogdanoff, Brian Burgess, Steve Vancore, Stephanie Kunkel, Pete Mitchell, John Stemberger, Ana Cruz, Katie Bohnett, Kristy Campbell, Kartik Krishnaiyer, Jeff Kottkamp, Jason Unger, Nick Primrose, Cynthia Henderson, April Schiff, Christina Barker, Greg Turbeville, Paul Mitchell, Henry Kelley, Gretchen Picotte, Jamie Wilson, Mike Hightower, David Aronberg, Eric Eikenberg, Mark Zubaly, Jim Kitchens, Alan Stonecipher, Steve Uhlfelder, Betty Castor, Bob Poe, Jack Seiler, Jose Mallea, Marion Hammer, Greg C. Truax, Aubrey Jewett, Sarah Rumpf, John Wehrung, Nancy McGowan, Damien Filer, Darryl Paulson, Gayle Andrews, John Konkus, Tony DiMatteo, Evelyn Perez-Verdia, Brian Crowley, Mike Hanna, Abel Harding, Stafford Jones, Barry Edwards, Matthew Van Name, Mark Ferrulo, Andrew Weinstein, Thomas Grigsby, Jon Woodard, Jackie Lee, Kathleen Shanahan, Christian Camara, Jason Roth, Allan Bense, Towson Fraser, Jack Furnari, Frank Tsamoutales, Chris Korge, Ryan Duffy, Marty Fiorentino, Seth McKee, Stephanie Grutman, Husein Cumber, Tom Lewis, Jon Mills, Karen Unger, Bob Sparks

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