Florida primaries test Trump's grip on his adopted state

Florida primaries set the stage for November contests

Florida Republicans nominated U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds for governor on Tuesday, according to the Associated Press and PBS, making him the state's first Black major-party gubernatorial nominee. Donalds, who is 47, now faces Democrat David Jolly, a former Republican congressman who switched parties last year and won his party's nomination, PBS reported.

Donalds was backed by President Donald Trump's endorsement in a primary that included Lt. Gov. Jay Collins and political newcomer James Fishback, the Associated Press reported. Gov. Ron DeSantis, who is term-limited and barred from running for a third consecutive term, did not endorse in the gubernatorial primary, the Associated Press noted.

The primaries are testing Trump's influence in a state he won in 2016, 2020, and 2024, the Associated Press reported. Registered Republicans now outnumber Democrats in Florida, and Miami-Dade County, which Trump lost by 30 points in 2016, has shifted dramatically toward him, narrowing the gap to 7 points in 2020 and carrying it by more than 11 in 2024.

DeSantis won his 2018 gubernatorial race by about 32,000 votes out of 8.1 million cast, the Associated Press reported. In 2022, Democrats nominated former Republican Gov. Charlie Crist, who lost by nearly 20 points. Democrats are hoping to regain ground, the Associated Press reported, citing Trump's slumping popularity ratings.

Senate primary: Nixon upsets Vindman

In the Democratic primary for the U.S. Senate special election to fill the remainder of Marco Rubio's term, progressive state lawmaker Angie Nixon defeated retired Army Lt. Col. Alex Vindman, PBS reported. Vindman had outraised Nixon by more than 16-to-1, according to PBS, and had testified in Trump's 2019 impeachment trial. Nixon now faces Sen. Ashley Moody, who was appointed by DeSantis in 2025 and is seeking the Republican nomination with Trump's endorsement, the Associated Press reported. Floridians haven't sent a Democrat to the Senate since 2012, the Associated Press noted.

A historic slate of Black gubernatorial nominees

Beyond Florida, Tuesday's primaries produced a historic number of Black major-party gubernatorial nominees. Across 250 years, only three elected governors have been Black, all Democrats and all men, including current Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, the Los Angeles Times reported. With Donalds' nomination, there are seven additional Black major-party gubernatorial nominees on November ballots, according to the Los Angeles Times, including Republicans John James in Michigan and Lisa Demuth in Minnesota, and Democrats David Crowley in Wisconsin, Aaron Ford in Nevada, Jermaine Johnson in South Carolina, and Keisha Lance Bottoms in Georgia. Either Bottoms or Demuth could become the country's first Black woman governor, PBS reported.

Donalds did not mention his race in his victory speech, saying, "I'll let you guys write about that," the Los Angeles Times reported. Moore, who recently became chair of the National Governors Association, said he had to "run against the party" and criticized "negligence" in Southern states, the Los Angeles Times reported. Former New York Gov. David Paterson, who ascended when Eliot Spitzer resigned in 2008, commented on the historic slate crossing party lines, saying, "This is one day when maybe the Democrats and Republicans could stand in front of a statue of George Washington and let him know that we're finally getting it right."

Democratic strategist Karen Finney noted that Black politicians advocate on issues like health disparities and economic inequality, the Los Angeles Times reported. Stacey Abrams, the 2018 Georgia gubernatorial nominee, said all politics is identity politics and that Republicans' version is more coded, the Los Angeles Times reported. Former Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, who was the first Black governor of that state, said successful candidates present themselves as candidates for everyone, and recalled criticism after not visiting a Boston neighborhood where a teenager was killed by gun violence. Ford, Nevada's Democratic nominee, said being governor means recognizing that jobs, housing, and healthcare cross demographic lines.

Other key races

In Florida's 20th Congressional District, Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, who has served since 2005, beat Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick and three other Black candidates in a redrawn plurality-Black district, PBS reported. The district no longer includes Wasserman Schultz's hometown of Weston, and she was the only white candidate in the race, the Associated Press and PBS reported. Cherfilus-McCormick, who had resigned earlier this year under a pending federal indictment, is accused of stealing $5 million in federal disaster aid and has pleaded not guilty, the Associated Press reported.

In the race to fill Trump's vacant seat, Trump-endorsed Catalina Lauf lost to Jim Schwartzel, PBS reported. The race included several candidates with criminal histories and prior runs in other states, according to PBS.

Rep. Cory Mills lost his bid for a third term to Ryan Elijah, a former television reporter, PBS reported. Mills faced allegations of domestic violence, and DeSantis and other Republicans had abandoned him, according to PBS and the Associated Press.

In Alaska's Senate race, incumbent Dan Sullivan and former U.S. Rep. Mary Peltola advanced, while two other spots were too early to call, PBS reported. In Wyoming, Trump-endorsed Megan Degenfelder lost in the governor primary to Eric Barlow, PBS reported.

In California's 14th District, pro-Israel group AIPAC's super PAC spent more than $2 million against Aisha Wahab and in support of Melissa Hernandez, PBS reported. In Michigan's Democratic Senate primary, pro-Israel spending seemed to backfire, according to PBS.

Democratic Rep. Jared Moskowitz won the nomination for reelection in a new Republican-friendly district against Oliver Larkin, PBS reported.