WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Florida Sen. Rick Scott has his sights set on a GOP leadership role, but first he must defeat two candidates in Tuesday’s Republican primary.
Scott, who won his Senate seat in 2018 by a margin of about 10,000 votes, is running for Senate Republican leader to replace retiring Sen. Mitch McConnell of Kentucky.
If Scott wins the primary, he will face a Democratic opponent in November.
The Democratic front-runner is former U.S. Congresswoman Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, who was endorsed by President Joe Biden in April and campaigned against Scott over the past year.
The Senate seat isn’t the only one to watch in Florida, as a number of the state’s congressional elections feature high-profile far-right lawmakers.
One example is U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, who is facing primary challenger Aaron Dimmick. That race has been fueled by a barrage of campaign ads, with Gaetz accusing Dimmick of being a carpetbagger who moved from Missouri to the Florida Panhandle to promote diversity and inclusion. Meanwhile, Dimmick has highlighted allegations of sexual misconduct against Gaetz.
U.S. Reps. Byron Donalds and Mike Waltz are also widely known conservative lawmakers. Donalds has no primary challengers, and Waltz faces John Grow, a software developer who may have a hard time defeating the conservative lawmaker. However, Waltz has spoken at former President Donald Trump’s campaign rallies, appeared on Fox News and appeared at the Republican National Convention last month.
US Congressman Cory Mills, who has also been closely associated with Trump and has ardently defended Gaetz in the past, is defending his seat against former Florida Senate candidate and veteran Mike Johnson.
Each of these members of Congress are far-right conservatives in Congress best known for their ties to Trump. They have led the former president’s defense, blocked budget bills and deals, toppled former House Speaker Kevin McCarthy, and fought for stricter abortion and immigration regulations.
Florida voters will also decide primaries in most of the 28 House of Representatives districts.
One of the more notable House races is in District 13, in Pinellas County along Florida’s Gulf Coast. The incumbent is Republican freshman Rep. Anna Paulina Luna, a member of the right-wing Freedom Caucus, who faces no opposition in the primary.
Five Democrats are vying to defeat Luna in the fall for a seat that is Republican but could potentially switch parties. Leading the pack in endorsements and fundraising is Whitney Fox, a former marketing and communications director for the county transit authority. Others include former congressional aide Liz Dahan and former Department of Health and Human Services adviser Sabrina Bousbar.
