No one has officially declared their candidacy for Florida governor, but the potential field of competitors is getting crowded already.

The race to replace term-limited Gov. Rick Scott is wide open to both political parties.

  • State Sen. Latvala, Tampa Mayor Buckhorn weighing options
  • House Speaker Richard Corcoran also considers run
  • Gov. Rick Scott will leave office after this term

And the potential Republican field just grew by one. State Sen. Jack Latvala of Clearwater is considering running.

"I think the chances are good," he said of running. "It's something I've been thinking about for a while."

Latvala cites his long career in politics and his success in private business.

"I think we need someone with some business experience up there," he said of the governor's office. "Republican candidates that we have so far for the next cycle don't have business experience."

Those potential Republican candidates for governor are Agricultural Commissioner Adam Putnam and House Speaker Richard Corcoran. Latvala and Corcoran are already set to do battle over Corcoran's bill to do away with Enterprise Florida and Visit Florida.

"Now they want to do away with it and don't want to replace it with anything," Latvala said. "It would be like going naked into the world to try to compete with other states for businesses and other states for tourists. It's the dumbest bill that I've seen in my time in the Florida Senate."

On the Democratic side, Tampa Mayor Bob Buckhorn may throw his hat in the ring for governor.

"I think in the next couple of months," Buckhorn said of the decision timeline. "That would give me 18 months to campaign if I chose to."

Attorney John Morgan also said he's strongly considering running.

The possibility of a Latvala versus Morgan matchup is intriguing. They are two men known for saying exactly what's on their mind and could make for a colorful governor's race.

Also on the Democrats' radar for governor: Former Congresswoman Gwen Graham, Tallahasee Mayor Andrew Gillum and Miami Beach Mayor Philip Levine.

There is also buzz in Tallahassee that Scott is trying to recruit a wealthy outsider like himself to run for governor in 2018. Scott is widely expected to run for U.S. Senate.

The field should take definite shape this summer.