(Florida Phoenix) — Republicans are celebrating in Florida and Washington, D.C., after two more of their ranks are going to Congress to pad the Republicans’ narrow lead over Democrats in the U.S. House of Representatives.
In the Congressional District 6 race in Northeast Florida, former state Sen. Randy Fine from Brevard County has defeated Democrat Josh Weil, an Orlando school teacher. Some polls showed Weil running competitively in the district, which went for Republican Mike Waltz over his Democratic opponent by 37 points in November.
With 95% of the votes counted, Fine led Weil with 56.5% to 44.5%.
In the District 1 race in Florida’s Panhandle, former Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis has defeated gun safety activist Democrat Gay Valimont, 56.1% to 42.8%. That was with 89% of the votes cast in the district.
Florida’s 6th District encompasses Flagler, Lake, Marion, Putnam, St. Johns, and Volusia counties. Neither Fine nor Weil live in the district.
Waltz served there for the past six years. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis represented the area from 2012-2018.
Undoubtedly, Trump’s endorsement benefitted Fine, although DeSantis said earlier on Tuesday that the president got “bad advice” to endorse him.
“I think the Republican will win, but he will underperform because a lot of Republicans aren’t going to be willing to go out and vote for him,” DeSantis told conservative talk-show host Dana Loesch.
“I mean, you had him on your show, he was fighting for an amnesty bill in the Florida Legislature, he was attacking me for wanting strong immigration legislation. And so when voters see that, it’s like, you know what? Why would I want to vote for you if you’re just going to stab us in the back?”
The two had been close allies until the fall of 2023, when Fine blamed the governor for his handling of Jewish concerns following the Hamas attack on Israel and came out to endorse Trump for president.
Although most Democrats knew it would be a miracle to upset a Republican in the district, the huge fundraising advantage that Weil enjoyed (approximately $10 million for Weil to $2 million for Fine) had given them hopes that they could substantially reduce the margin of defeat.
‘There you go again”
“As Ronald Reagan said, ‘there you go again,’’ said Florida political strategist Barry Edwards. “This is another example of the Democrats overpromising and underdelivering, which is going to have an immediate effect of disillusioning the many donors and volunteers who helped on these races that thought that they were competitive, but they weren’t. And shame on the Democratic leadership, because they knew better.”
Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin made a trip to District 6 over the weekend on behalf of the Weil campaign.
Weil released a statement shortly after the polls closed.
“The numbers didn’t add up in our favor today,” he said.
“We shouldn’t be disappointed however; this race was closer than anyone ever imagined. In a district won by Mike Walz by 32 points, we closed that gap by a historic margin. An incredible gain. This progress is because of our grassroots supporters across the country and the voters in this district — Democrats, Republicans, and Independents — who believe in a brighter and kinder future.
“This result is also a warning sign to Donald Trump, Randy Fine, and the unelected oligarchs taking apart the government. Should they continue to steal people’s hard-earned money and benefits like Social Security and Medicare, defund education, focus more on culture wars than lowering costs: the backlash is only beginning.”
The bigger surprise of the night was in Florida’s 1st District, in far Northwestern Florida, encompassing Escambia, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, and parts of Walton County. Valimont raised $6.3 million from Jan. 9 through March 12, compared to Patronis, who raised $1.1 million.
At 9 p.m., Eastern time Valimont was training by 15 points — 17 points closer than 2024 and the closest congressional margin in CD 1 history, according to Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried. In addition, Valimont is the first Democratic candidate in modern history to win Escambia County.
“Florida Democrats just put the Republican Party on notice,” Fried said. “Tonight’s results represent a historic overperformance for Democrats and show that voters are already rejecting Trump’s extreme agenda.
Patronis had been considering a run for governor before Trump came out and endorsed him almost immediately after the seat became vacant following Trump’s selecting Matt Gaetz to leave the district to serve as his attorney general. (Gaetz ended up withdrawing from consideration for the position).
Patronis won the Republican primary election for CD-1 in late January, defeating nine opponents.
“That’s just an example of Donald Trump being more strategic than people give him credit for,” Edwards said, noting that Trump endorsed Patronis immediately after the District 1 seat became vacant.
“He wanted to have the field cleared for Byron Donalds, so he calls up Jimmy Patronis, who had told people he wasn’t going to run for Congress, and he endorses him. Four months later, Patronis is the congressman, which opens up the CFO seat for his buddy Joe Gruters and the governor’s seat for Byron Donalds.”
Gruters, a Sarasota-based state Senator, has already announced his candidacy for chief financial officer in 2026 and has been endorsed by Trump for that seat. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis isn’t expected to announce a successor to Patronis for the CFO spot until sometime after the Florida legislative session ends in May. He is not expected to name Gruters, who endorsed Trump over DeSantis for president in 2023.
