Primary elections held Tuesday in Florida and Alaska resulted in a victory for a progressive Democratic candidate in Florida and a strong performance by a centrist Democrat in Alaska. In Florida, Angie Nixon defeated Alex Vindman in the Democratic primary for U.S. Senate. In Alaska, Mary Peltola led incumbent Republican Senator Dan S. Sullivan in a nonpartisan primary, with 93% of precincts reporting.
The results come as both parties prepare for the November general election, which will determine control of Congress. Florida, once a battleground state, showed continued Republican strength as GOP candidates drew 1.6 million votes across statewide contests compared to 1.2 million for Democrats. The election was also the first held under a new congressional map that nonpartisan analysts say could result in Republicans holding 24 of the state's 28 House seats.
President Donald Trump's endorsed candidates saw varying results. While Byron Donalds won the Republican nomination for governor and Sydney Gruters won a House primary, other endorsed candidates like Catalina Lauf and Representative Cory Mills lost their races. In Wyoming, Trump-backed Harriet Hageman won her Republican Senate nomination. Despite Trump's public opposition to mail-in ballots, approximately 1.15 million Floridians used them, including the president himself.
Registered voters in Florida will see a significant shift in representation due to the new redistricting map, which could reduce Democratic House seats to just four out of 28. In Alaska, the nonpartisan primary system saw Mary Peltola receive 48% of the vote against incumbent Dan S. Sullivan’s 42.8%. A third candidate, also named Dan J. Sullivan, received 2.4% of the vote and is currently the subject of a Justice Department investigation into whether his candidacy was intended to confuse voters.
The election results indicate how internal party dynamics and presidential endorsements are influencing candidate selection ahead of the November 3rd general election. Candidates who won their primaries will now shift to general election campaigning, where control of the 100-seat U.S. Senate is at stake. Democrats currently require a net gain of four seats to take control of the chamber. The outcomes in Florida and Alaska will be finalized as remaining precincts report and official certifications occur in the coming weeks.