Florida's Latest News

Trump coasts to victory in Florida

Former President Trump will win his home state of Florida, adding 30 electoral votes to his total, Decision Desk HQ projects. The Sunshine State is one that Democrats had eyed as polls showed a tightening race, with Trump leading Vice President Harris by just a few points in some cases.

But it didn’t seem to realistically be within their grasp. Polling had still consistently showed Trump leading across major pollsters. 

Florida has now voted for the Republican presidential nominee, Trump, three times in a row going back to 2016. The state was considered the quintessential swing state for years, having decided the 2000 presidential election for George W. Bush, but it has shifted significantly to the right in recent years. 

Even four years ago it seemed to still be in swing state territory, as polling showed now-President Biden ahead by a few points going into Election Day. This cycle it was not seen as a battleground but losing it would have been a big blow to Trump’s electoral prospects. 

Trump is the first Republican candidate to win Miami-Dade County since 1988

Former President Donald Trump won Miami-Dade County, Florida, on Tuesday, unofficial election results show, solidifying the remarkable blue-to-red swing of the state’s most populous county.

Miami-Dade used to be where Democrats ran up their numbers, turning out liberal voters, many of whom had moved there from New York City and elsewhere in the Northeast. Hillary Clinton won the county by 30 percentage points in 2016.

But as Florida has transformed from a battleground state into one that votes more reliably Republican, Miami-Dade, too, has changed. Hispanics, who had appeared to be leaning Democratic in the 2008 and 2012 elections, started shifting right. In 2020, President Joe Biden won the county by 7 points.

On Tuesday, Trump defeated Vice President Kamala Harris, becoming the first Republican presidential candidate to win Miami-Dade since George H.W. Bush in 1988. Trump also won Florida, according to The Associated Press. He was on track to win both Miami-Dade County and Florida by double digits.

Rick Scott wins second term in U.S. Senate, with eye on top GOP leadership post

Republican U.S. Sen. Rick Scott defeated former Democratic U.S. Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell to win a second term Tuesday, and he will now look toward running for Senate leadership.

Scott hopes to succeed U.S. Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky, who is retiring as the GOP leader. His win in Florida reaffirmed the strength of the Republican Party in the state despite ballot measures on abortion rights and recreational marijuana legalization that Democrats hoped would drive up turnout.

Scott received over 54% of votes, with 75% of precincts reporting, according to NBC News numbers. Scott needed a recount to win his first Senate election, but that was when Democrats had an advantage in voter registration. This year, Republicans now outnumber Democrats by about a million voters, and Scott’s victory came two years after Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis and Republican U.S. Sen. Marco Rubio won in landslides.

Four in 10 Florida voters said the economy and jobs is the top issue facing the country, according to AP VoteCast, a sweeping survey of more than 110,000 voters nationally, including more than 4,700 voters in Florida. About 2 in 10 Florida voters said immigration is the most pressing issue, and about 1 in 10 named abortion.

Republicans continue control of Florida Legislature

Democrats in the Florida Legislature had modest hopes this election. They didn’t expect to retake control of the House or Senate. They just wanted to pick up a few seats, chipping away at the supermajority Republicans have held since 2022. Tuesday night, they might have lost one.

The result means Republicans will continue their lockdown control of the state Legislature, ensuring they can carry out Gov. Ron DeSantis’ agenda during his final two years in office.

“The election is pretty clear,” incoming Senate President Ben Albritton, R-Wauchula, said Tuesday night. “It shows people in Florida support what we’ve been doing. They support common sense government and common sense governing.”

Democrats were counting on higher turnout trickling down to state legislative contests from the presidential race and Amendment 4, which would have overturned the state’s six-week abortion ban. Democrats, for the first time in decades, also fielded a candidate in all 140 legislative seats up for election this year.