Florida Senate Race Set: Republican Ashley Moody Vs. Democrat Angie Nixon
Nixon, a Democratic Socialist, beat impeachment witness Alex Vindman in the primary, while Moody, who holds the seat by appointment, easily won the Republican nomination.
Florida voters will choose between Republican Sen. Ashley Moody and Democratic state Rep. Angie Nixon in November after both won their primaries on Tuesday, according to a projection by the Associated Press reported by CBS News.
Moody, 51, beat a handful of lesser-known Republican challengers, including Army veteran Chris Gleason, physician Neelam Perry and minister Ernie Rivera, CBS News reported. She is trying to hold the seat she was appointed to by Governor Ron DeSantis of Florida in January 2025, after Marco Rubio left it to become secretary of state. Moody served as Florida's attorney general from 2019 until that appointment, and before that worked as a commercial litigator and federal prosecutor. She became the state's youngest circuit court judge in 2007, according to CBS News. In the Senate, she has backed President Trump's agenda and won his endorsement last month; Trump said she is "doing a tremendous job representing the incredible people of Florida," CBS News reported.
An Insurgent Democrat Wins
Nixon's primary victory was the bigger surprise. The 42 year old state representative, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, defeated Alex Vindman, a former National Security Council official who testified against Trump in his first impeachment trial, CBS News reported. Vindman had a significant financial advantage in the race, according to CBS News, but lost to a candidate who campaigned on Medicare for All, free child care, paid family and sick leave and a national rent freeze. CBS News noted that Nixon's win fits a pattern this midterm cycle of progressive Democrats beating better funded, more moderate rivals in primaries from New York City to Colorado to Michigan. Nixon has represented part of the Jacksonville area in the Florida statehouse since 2020.
A Steep Climb In November
Florida last sent a Democrat to the Senate in 2012, and the state has trended more Republican since then, according to CBS News. Democrats need to flip four seats nationally to take control of a Senate now held 53 to 47 by Republicans, CBS News reported, and see few other pickup opportunities, making Florida a race the party is watching closely despite the long odds.
Moody is running to serve out the remainder of Rubio's term, which ends in early 2029, CBS News reported. The Senate race is one of several contests on Florida's primary ballot this cycle. The Guardian reported that Byron Donalds won the Republican nomination for governor and David Jolly, a former Republican who switched parties last year, won the Democratic nomination in the same primary elections.
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