Divergent Democratic results in Florida give the party another 2028 proving ground: ANALYSIS
The split results in Florida's Democratic primaries Tuesday underscore the divisions roiling the party in a state that has moved firmly to the right in the Trump era.
Capitalizing on his role testifying in President Donald Trump's first impeachment investigation in 2019, Alex Vindman, a former Army lieutenant colonel who served on the National Security Council, jumped into the Senate race against Sen. Ashley Moody, the Republican appointed to replace Marco Rubio, and immediately became a fundraising juggernaut.
His campaign raised $16 million -- more than many established Democratic candidates and a haul that gave some Democrats optimism the formerly competitive state could go back on the board in a wave election year, despite Vindman's shallow ties to the state.
But his millions will go unspent in the general election because state Rep. Angela Nixon outworked her opponent, despite his 16-1 fundraising advantage, and scored a major upset.
A Jacksonville-area progressive once arrested for protesting redistricting in Gov. Ron DeSantis' office, Nixon, has campaigned on raising taxes on billionaires to fund a national rent freeze and Medicare for All.
She recently joined the Democratic Socialists of America, and while she has tried to downplay what she calls "labels," Republicans celebrated her win -- and suggested her connections to the DSA would resonate in a state with many voters who fled communist and socialist regimes in Latin America.
Nixon will appear on the ballot with David Jolly, the Democratic nominee for governor and former Republican congressman, who declared in his victory speech Tuesday that the "new coalition" emerging in Florida will "embrace capitalism..
A similar dynamic played out for Democrats in 2018, when moderate Democratic Sen. Bill Nelson and progressive gubernatorial candidate Andrew Gillum appeared on the ballot in the first Trump midterm.
The pair lost to Republicans Rick Scott and DeSantis by about 32,000 and 10,000 votes, respectively.
With Florida having moved further out of reach for Democrats in 2024, it's unlikely the president's adopted state will be a battleground for control of the Senate.
But the divergent Democratic ticket in a large, diverse state will ensure that it remains a proving ground in the party's fight over the vision for its future heading into 2028.
