The Senate seat was vacated when its previous occupant, Jay Collins, was appointed Florida’s lieutenant governor. Nathan’s campaign sought to downplay culture wars and instead elevate issues such as better paying jobs, affordable housing, and quality education. It’s the latest Democratic upset in Florida, which has swung solidly Republican in the Trump era.
In December, Miami Beach elected its first Democratic mayor in 30 years, and this month, Boca Raton chose its first Democratic mayor in 45 years. Just last week, Democrat Emily Gregory, a small business owner, also pulled off an upset win in the state House district where Trump’s Mar-a-Lago mansion is located.
The wins are part of a national trend in President Trump’s second term, with Democrats flipping 30 Republican seats in state legislatures across the country, according to The New York Times. While Nathan and Gregory will have to defend their new seats again in November, and Florida still retains Republican supermajorities in both of its legislatures, their wins still signal a rough midterm election for Republicans nationally in November. Trump escalating the war in Iran and continuing to sow economic chaos isn’t helping, either.
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