As polls closed in Florida on Tuesday night and results were tallied, there were a number of surprises in store. But there wasn’t a general theme that voters seemed to follow.
Democratic socialists pulled off a major upset in one statewide primary race, while moderate Democratic incumbents were able to fend off challenges from their progressive opponents. A scandal-plagued Republican incumbent was ousted from his seat, but President Donald Trump — who had endorsed him earlier in the cycle — didn’t seem surprised.
And between all those headlines, Rep. Byron Donalds could be on his way to making history as Florida’s first black governor.
Here are the top 5 takeaways from a wild primary night in Florida.
Democratic socialist defeats opponent who far outraised her
Perhaps the biggest upset of the night was the victory of state Rep. Angela Nixon, who won the Democratic primary for Florida’s Senate race.
She defeated Alex Vindman, who rose to prominence in 2019 as a witness in Trump’s first impeachment trial and had garnered the support of the Democratic establishment. Despite raising 16 times as much campaign money in the primary, Vindman fell to Nixon by 13 percentage points.
Nixon’s victory came as a shock as she spent only $60,000 on advertising compared to Vindman’s $16.3 million.
But her victory marks the latest upset from a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, who have managed to defeat a number of Democrats in Congress so far this primary season.
Some moderate Democrats hold on
But it wasn’t a complete sweep for those democratic socialists. Several moderate Democrats running in tough primary fights were able to fend off their challengers running to the left.
Rep. Jared Moskowitz, a pro-Israel and establishment-backed candidate, easily defeated his democratic socialist opponent, Oliver Larkin, by nearly 30 percentage points. Larkin had targeted Moskowitz for his support of military aid to Israel as the incumbent is one of the most vocal supporters of Israel within the Democratic Party.
Meanwhile, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz fended off her own primary challenge. The 11-term incumbent was forced to run in a new district this year after Republicans redrew congressional boundaries, an effort to boost GOP chances of defending the House in November.
Wasserman Schultz was tossed into a historically black district, prompting some Democrats to urge her to retire. However, Wasserman Schultz remained in the race and defeated two black candidates vying for the seat.
Scandal-plagued Republican is latest to lose primary
Rep. Cory Mills, who faces an ethics investigation over accusations of sexual assault, was the latest incumbent to be ousted from Congress.
Mills was defeated by Ryan Elijah, a former local television news anchor, by roughly 13 percentage points. Despite having Trump’s endorsement, the president said in a social media post that he told Mills “to get out of the Race, but he wouldn’t listen.”
Trump has since endorsed Elijah in the general election.
Mills’ defeat is partially attributed to a number of his Republican colleagues coming out against him in recent weeks due to the assault allegations. Two Florida House members endorsed Elijah in recent weeks, arguing they couldn’t risk losing the seat in November with Mills as the nominee.
Byron Donalds on track to make history as first Black governor of Florida
Rep. Byron Donalds is on track to become the first Black governor of the state of Florida after securing the Republican nomination in the gubernatorial primary on Tuesday.
Donalds amassed roughly 48% of the vote, easily defeating his challengers — including one opponent, James Fishback, who had been accused of using racist and derogatory language in the past. Donalds also defeated Jay Collins, who currently serves as the state’s lieutenant governor.
Donalds is now poised to win the general election in Florida, which hasn’t had a Democrat serving as governor since 1999.
Randy Fine defeats challenger who lobbied antisemitic attacks
Rep. Randy Fine easily defeated his primary challengers on Tuesday, including one opponent who attacked the GOP incumbent with antisemitic remarks and pro-Adolf Hitler messaging.
Influencer Dan Bilzerian only received 18.7% of the vote compared to Fine’s 56%, according to results reported by Wednesday morning. It’s a major defeat for a candidate who attracted widespread criticism from both Republicans and Democrats.
Fine declared victory, but Bilzerian has since taken to social media to claim that “they clearly cheated, they literally took away my votes.”