Sen. Ashley Moody (R-FL) and State Rep. Angie Nixon (D-FL) won their respective primaries for a U.S. Senate seat in Florida on Tuesday, according to projections from The Associated Press. The results establish the matchup for the November general election, where Moody will seek to retain the seat she has held since her appointment last year. The race is part of a broader national effort by Democrats to gain seats in the Senate, where Republicans currently hold a 53-seat majority.
Moody, a former Florida Attorney General, was appointed to the Senate by Gov. Ron DeSantis in January 2025 to fill the vacancy left by Marco Rubio. She previously served as a federal prosecutor and a circuit court judge. In the Republican primary, she defeated several challengers, including Army veteran Chris Gleason, physician Neelam Perry, and minister Ernie Rivera. Moody campaigned on her record of supporting law enforcement and received an endorsement from former President Donald Trump.
In the Democratic primary, Nixon defeated Alex Vindman, a former National Security Council official known for his testimony in the first impeachment trial of Donald Trump. Nixon has served in the Florida statehouse since 2020, representing parts of the Jacksonville area. Her campaign focused on a platform of progressive policies, including Medicare for All and national rent controls, and she secured the nomination despite being outspent by her opponent.
The scale of the political impact extends to the national level, where control of the 100-member U.S. Senate is at stake. Currently, Republicans hold 53 seats, meaning Democrats must gain four seats to take control of the chamber. With the source reporting that Florida last elected a Democrat to the Senate in 2012, a win for Nixon would represent a significant change in the state's recent voting patterns and a key step toward the Democrats' goal of flipping four seats. For federal workers and citizens nationwide, the resulting shift in party control would dictate which party chairs committees and sets the legislative calendar for issues ranging from federal spending to judicial confirmations.
Looking ahead, Moody and Nixon will now move to the general election scheduled for November. While the source describes the state as becoming increasingly Republican-leaning, Democrats are treating this race as a pickup opportunity to offset challenges in other states. The winner will serve out the final years of the term vacated by Rubio. There are no further primary contests for this seat, and the two candidates will spend the coming months campaigning across Florida's 67 counties to secure a majority of the vote in the fall.