Republicans Sweep Governor and Cabinet Races
Incumbent Governor Ron DeSantis soundly defeated Charlie Crist in Florida’s race for Governor, leading a Republican sweep of the state’s top elected offices. Current Chief Financial Officer prevailed in his bid for another term, as did incumbent Attorney General Ashley Moody. They are joined by Republican Wilton Simpson, the outgoing Senate president who won an open seat for Commissioner of Agriculture. The Commissioner of Agriculture position did not have an incumbent because current commissioner Nikki Fried did not run again to pursue the Governor’s race as a Democrat. Fried lost to Crist in the Democrat primary.
In Florida’s U.S. Senate race, Republican Marco Rubio also won against Democrat Val Demings.
Meanwhile Republicans also picked up seats in the Florida Senate and House of Representatives. It appears Republicans will hold supermajorities in both chambers.
Just four years ago, DeSantis prevailed by just 33,000 votes in initially capturing the Governor’s race. After a successful first time, the Governor eclipsed former Florida Governor and U.S. Representative Charlie Crist by more than 1.3 million votes.