Final polls close in Alaska

James Powel

Polls closed in the remaining portions of Alaska at 1 a.m. ET. The majority of the state saw its polls close at 12 a.m. ET.

Why do Alaska primaries have 4 winners?

Emily R. Condon

Alaska voters voted on Aug. 18 in nonpartisan primaries, with the top four finishers advancing to November’s ranked-choice general election.

In 2020, Alaska voters passed a ballot initiative establishing an open primary system in which voters could cast votes regardless of party and the top four candidates advance to the general election. The system has been used in the state’s 2022 and 2024 elections.

A nonpartisan voter organization, Fair Vote, citing a 2024 survey, said that Alaskan voters like open primaries and that “ranked choice voting is simple.” Still, not everyone supports the system.

Republican state Rep. Ken McCarty, Republican gubernatorial candidate Bernadette Wilson and former deputy director of the Anchorage Public Library Judy Eledge sponsored an initiative to get rid of it.

In the November general election, voters can repeal the open primaries and ranked-choice voting through the three’s ballot initiative.

Polls close in most of Alaska

James Powel

Polls closed for the Alaska primary in much of the state at 12 a.m. ET. Polls in portions of the Aleutian Islands will close at 1 a.m. ET. Results in the areas where polls have closed are expected shortly.

Trump-backed candidate falls short in Wyoming

Phillip M. Bailey

President Donald Trump’s dominance in Republican primaries took another hit Aug. 18, this time in the Wyoming primary for governor.

Eric Barlow, a state legislator, easily defeated Trump’s pick, Megan Degenfelder, in one of the most conservative states in the country, according to The Associated Press and NBC News.

A self-described fourth-generation rancher, Barlow sought to tone down recent rifts among Equality State conservatives and advertised himself as a stoic problem-solver. That stood in contrast to Degenfelder, the state’s superintendent of public instruction, who leaned more into culture war issues such as supporting a ban on transgender athletes in girls’ sports.

This marks another loss for Trump in choosing GOP primary winners, which earlier this year catapulted congressional incumbents out of office in Kentucky, Louisiana, and Texas.

In Minnesota, former MyPillow CEO Mike Lindell, a staunch Trump ally, fell short in his gubernatorial bid. At least two other contenders for Congress in Florida, Rep. Cory Mills and candidate Catalina Lauf, backed by the president, lost their races on Tuesday as well.

Republican voters have also ignored Trump’s recommended candidates in competitive Georgia, Iowa, and South Carolina‘s primaries for governor this year.

Alaska voters can establish limits to campaign contributions

Emily R. Condon

Also on the Alaska ballot tonight in the state’s non-partisan primaries: a ballot measure to re-impose campaign contribution limits for state and local elections. Limits were removed by a court ruling in 2021, according the the measure.

A yes vote on this ballot measure would establish campaign contribution limits – which would increase with inflation every 10 years – for state and local candidates at:

• Individuals could donate $2,000 to candidates, $4,000 to joint campaigns for governor and lieutenant governor and $5,000 to political parties
• Groups that are not political parties could give $4,000 to candidates, $8,000 to joint campaigns for governor and lieutenant governor and $5,000 to parties or groups

A January Ipsos survey found that a majority of Americans don’t see unlimited campaign spending as a protected free speech and that 81% of Americans are concerned about how money influences U.S. politics.

Campaign finances is a topic among Alaska voters and across the United States this year, as the Supreme Court in June overruled a quarter-century-old decision capping how much parties can spend in coordination with candidates. This campaign cycle, Alaska voters are expressing frustration with outside interests funding their Senate race, as Democratic hopeful Mary Peltola seeks to oust incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan and flip a red seat to blue.

17 contenders vying for open Alaska governor’s seat

Emily R. Condon

Seventeen candidates are vying for Alaska’s open governor’s seat as Republican Gov. Mike Dunleavy is termed out after 2018 and 2022 wins in the state. Dunleavy leaves office as the most unpopular governor in the country, according to a February 2026 Morning Consult survey, where he was one of two governors with negative approval.

In Alaska’s top-four nonpartisan primary, four candidates advance from the primary, regardless of party, to the general election, where ranked choice voting is used.

The leading candidate, according to a July 1 poll, is former state Senate Democratic Minority Leader Tom Begich, who comes from a family of Alaskan politicians. His brother is former Democratic U.S. Sen. Mark Begich; his father is former Democratic U.S. Rep. Nick Begich Sr.; and his nephew is current Republican U.S. Rep. Nick Begich III.

In that poll, four other candidates had double-digit percentage points. Democratic former state Rep. Jonathan Kreiss-Tomkins ranked second, followed by three Republicans: former Anchorage Mayor Dave Bronson, businesswoman Bernadette Wilson and former state Sen. Click Bishop.

While the state has an almost-perfect record voting Republican in presidential elections, Democrats and independents have won the state in recent history. Before Dunleavy, independent Gov. Bill Walker served one term and Democrats have had success in statewide elections for Congress and in the state legislature.

Angie Nixon would be first DSA member in Senate

Emily R. Condon

Florida state rep. Angie Nixon is the newest democratic socialist to advance to the general elections this November, joining the slate of more progressive Democratic primary winners like Michigan Senate candidate Abdul El-Sayed and Illinois Senate candidate and current Lt. Gov. Juliana Stratton.

The Jacksonville-born and raised Nixon beat her more moderate Democratic opponent, Alex Vindman, for the Democratic Senate nomination in Florida according to projections by the Associated Press and CNN. Vindman is a retired Army lieutenant colonel and witness during Trump’s first impeachment case in 2019.

A member of the Democratic Socialists of America, Nixon’s campaign website quotes a labor leader saying, “hardworking people should get to determine and shape what their communities look like” and highlights her work as a union organizer. If she wins in November, Nixon would be the first DSA member of the Senate, although in Congress’ lower chamber, Reps. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez and Rashid Tlaib are members of the organization. Sen. Bernie Sanders is a democratic socialist, but he is not a DSA member.

Three Democratic nominees who won primaries earlier this summer for U.S. House of Representative seats – Darializa Avila Chevalier and Claire Valdez in New York and Melat Kiros in Colorado – also belong to the group.

In an NBC News interview on Aug. 17, Nixon did not respond to a question about her DSA membership, instead saying that, “we can argue all day about peoples’ labels, but at the end of the day, I care about the needs of people.”

Donalds campaigning as a Trump Republican

Emily R. Condon

Rep. Byron Donalds, the Republican nominee for Florida governor, is running as an acolyte of President Donald Trump, whose endorsement he received in the primary.

On the top of Donalds’ issues section on his campaign website is a commitment to “enact the Trump agenda.” The site is laced with photos of the Florida congressman and the president, and his campaign Twitter bio boasts Trump’s endorsement as its first word.

Besides relying on a connection to Trump, Donalds’ campaign site goes on to promise standard Republican policies: fighting illegal immigration, lowering taxes and protecting conservative values. He also cites improving infrastructure in the Sunshine State and pledges to complete restoration projects in the Everglades and to protect Florida beaches.

“Now is the time to keep the best state in the country as the best state in the country,” Donalds said in a FOX News interview in February where he announced his candidacy.

Donalds, a church volunteer, also brings religion into his campaign, sharing his “come-to-Jesus” moment, which he initially shared in 2023. He tells voters a story from when he was a Cracker Barrel waiter during his time as a student at Florida State University. He says he was serving a church group and the Lord spoke to him.

“To you, it’s just a Cracker Barrel parking lot. To me, it’s where I gave my life to Jesus Christ,” Donalds posted in a June 2026 post that retold the story.

Angie Nixon could be Florida’s first Black US senator

James Powel

State lawmaker Angie Nixon’s upset victory in the Democratic Florida Senate Special Primary set up the possibility that she could be the Florida’s first Black U.S. senator.

A victory in November would see her also become the state’s third woman to served as U.S. senator, following Republican Sen. Paula Hawkins and her incumbent rival Sen. Ashley Moody, who was appointed to the seat after Marco Rubio left to become Secretary of State in the Trump administration. Hawkins won the seat in 1980 and stepped into the upper chamber days early after then Sen. Richard Stone retired at the end of the year.

Democrats in Florida have nominated other Black candidates for the U.S. Senate. In 2022, Democrats nominated former U.S. Rep. Val Demings, who represented Florida’s 10th Congressional District, to face Rubio. In 2010, they nominated former U.S. Rep. Kendrick B. Meek, who represented Florida’s 17th Congressional District, and who also lost to Rubio.

Florida’s Democratic candidate for governor is a former GOP congressman. What are his policies?

James Call

The Democratic Party’s hopes in Florida’s governor’s race rest largely with David Jolly, a former GOP congressman, MSNBC commentator and longtime critic of President Donald Trump.

Jolly is betting frustrations with inflation, rising food costs and expensive insurance will help Democrats break Republicans’ three-decade hold on the governor’s mansion. He’s telling voters a Democratic gubernatorial victory is possible.

Since entering the race in June 2025, Jolly’s core message at town halls, meet and greets and media interviews has been that Republican leaders in Tallahassee have ignored the financial pressures working people, retirees and young professionals face. 

“Folks, nothing’s going to change in Tallahassee if the same people who have paid for it for 30 years keep paying for another four. Byron is just a vessel for the deep pocket interests that control Tallahassee,” Jolly said while rallying Democrat activists in Orlando.  

His campaign’s focus on the rising cost of living aligns with what voters tell pollsters they want officials to address.

One of Jolly’s policy prescriptions is to create a state-managed catastrophe fund that would remove hurricane insurance from the private market, which he says would dramatically reduce premiums. Donalds has focused on other insurance reforms, saying he wants to revisit Florida’s insurance regulations, among other things.

According to a recent University of North Florida poll, property insurance, housing costs, and property taxes rank among voters’ top concerns.

Democratic socialist Angie Nixon wins Florida Democratic Senate nomination

Terry Collins

Florida state Rep. Angie Nixon, won an upset victory in Florida’s Senate Democratic primary against Alex Vindman, the Associated Press and Decision Desk HQ both projected.

Vindman, a retired Army lieutenant colonel who gave critical testimony during Trump’s first impeachment in 2019, was backed by party leaders and outraised Nixon $16 million to $900,00 in the latest progressive-against-the-establishment battle.

Nixon, who reportedly joined the Democratic Socialists of America in June, received the endorsement of several progressives, including Democratic Reps. Maxwell Frost of Florida, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts. 

“We did it ya’ll,” Nixon posted on X moments after she was declared the winner. “Thank you to every person that put their heart into this campaign.”

Now, Nixon becomes the first Black woman to win a major party nomination for U.S. Senate in Florida. If she defeats incumbent Republican Sen. Ashley Moody in the Nov. 3 general election, Nixon would also become the first Black lawmaker and second woman ever elected to represent Florida in the U.S. Senate.

Trump carried Florida by 13 points in 2024, meaning Moody will likely be favored in the general election.

Polls close in Wyoming

James Powel

Polls closed for the Wyoming primaries at 9 p.m. ET. Results are expected shortly.

Trump-backed Mills loses reelection bid in GOP primary

Emily R. Condon

Rep. Cory Mills lost his reelection bid to represent Florida’s 7th Congressional District in the Republican primary to challenger Ryan Elijah, according to projections by NBC News and the Associates Press.

Elijah is a former Orlando-based news anchor who was endorsed by two of Mills’ Florida colleagues in the House of Representatives – 8th District Rep. Mike Haridopolos and 13th District Rep. Anna Paulina Luna. Elijah beat out three other Republicans, including Mills, and in the general election will face Democrat Bale Dalton, a former Navy Captain and NASA chief of staff, according to AP and NBC News projections.

In November 2025, the House Committee on Ethics launched an investigation into Mills, and a May statement about the ongoing subcommittee investigation stated it was still looking into Mills possibly violating “various laws, rules, or other standards of conduct” and a Washington D.C. Metropolitan Police Department response “to a report that Representative Mills had assaulted a woman with whom he was in a relationship.”

Mills faced calls from within his own party to leave Congress over the allegations. President Donald Trump nonetheless endorsed him for reelection.

Mills has denied wrongdoing, and he did not step down from Congress.

Contributing: Zachary Schermele, USA TODAY, Mark Harper, USA TODAY Network

Wasserman Schultz wins Democratic primary in redrawn Florida congressional district

Terry Collins

U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz has won the Democratic primary race in Florida’s redrawn 20th Congressional District, the Associated Press and Decision Desk HQ projected Tuesday night.

With 82% of all votes counted, Wasserman Schultz held a commanding lead over former Broward County Mayor Dale Holness, progressive activist and Democratic socialist Elijah Manley, former Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick and hip-hop icon Luther “Uncle Luke” Campbell.

Wasserman Schultz was the only White candidate and faced heavy criticism for running in a historically Black and deeply Democratic area in Broward County that also includes the city of Fort Lauderdale, after her own district was significantly redrawn.

In the Nov. 3 general election, she will face Republican candidate Brent Andersen, who also handily won his GOP primary race.

Byron Donalds a step closer to becoming Florida’s first Black governor

Terry Collins

Rep. Byron Donalds is one step closer to becoming the first Black governor of the state after winning Florida’s Republican gubernatorial nomination Tuesday.

Donalds received the key endorsement from President Donald Trump, whom he has steadfastly supported, raised more than $100 million for his campaign, and led in polls.

Donalds will face Democratic nominee David Jolly, a former Republican congressman and noted Trump critic, in the Nov. 3 general election. Polls show Donalds ahead by a few points in the Republican-leaning state.

Donalds will be the second Black candidate nominated for governor of Florida. In 2018, Tallahassee Mayor Andrew Gillum, a Democrat, made history as the first Black major-party nominee for governor in Florida. Gillum narrowly lost the general election to Republican Ron DeSantis by fewer than 34,000 votes in the third most-populous state.

DeSantis won reelection for governor in 2022. He has not endorsed Donalds.

Moskowitz routs Larkin in redrawn district

James Powel and John Pacenti

Rep. Jared Moskowitz handily defeated Democratic Socialists of America aligned challenger Oliver Larkin in Florida’s redrawn 25th Congressional District. Decision Desk HQ and the Associated Press called the race shortly after polls closed at 7 p.m.

Moskowitz, who currently represents the 23rd District, will defend his tenure in November.

AP’s results dashboard showed Moskowitz with a 28-point lead with approximately 86% of the vote counted just after 8 p.m.

Larkin had sought to ride a recent swell of anti-establishment sentiment in the Democratic Party and sway voters away from the incumbent over his support for Israel.

Moskowitz, who is Jewish, refused to engage with his challenger, saying to Miami’s WLRN in July that he would not “platform” Larkin because “he’s running against me solely on my religion.”

The eventual winner of the seat in November will represent a district that is 25% Jewish with a high concentration of Holocaust survivors.

Jolly wins Democratic gubernatorial nomination in Florida

James Powel

David Jolly has won the Democratic nomination for the Florida governor race.

The Decision Desk HQ and the Associated Press projected Jolly’s win just after 8 p.m.

Donalds wins GOP gubernatorial nomination in Florida

James Powel

Rep. Byron Donalds has won the Republican nomination in Florida’s gubernatorial race.

Decision Desk HQ and CNN projected the race shortly after 8 p.m.

Democrats hope Mary Peltola can flip a red Senate seat blue

Emily R. Condon

In Alaska’s nonpartisan primary for Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan’s seat, the four top candidates will head to the general election. Sullivan and his top Democratic challenger, former Rep. Mary Peltola, are virtually guaranteed to make the cut. As Democrats aim to slim the Republican majority in the Senate – or claim it – in November, eyes are on Peltola as one the party’s leading contenders.

Peltola won two elections for Alaska’s lone congressional seat in 2022 – first a special election to temporarily serve after the death of Republican Rep. Don Young and then the regularly scheduled general election. She lost her 2024 reelection bid to now-Rep. Nicholas Begich, a Republican, as Trump carried Alaska by over 13 points.

Political analyst Kyle Kondik of the Center for Politics calls the Senate race a toss up, and Alaska-based political scientists told USA TODAY that the state does not always vote Republican – pointing to Peltola and other recent Democratic on independent wins in statewide elections – and that Peltola has separated herself from the Democratic brand in the eyes of Alaska voters when it comes to balancing the environment with the economic importance of the state’s extractive industries such as oil and gas production.

“She is a Democrat, but she’s sort of a different type of Democrat than sort of the national profile of Democrats because she supports energy projects here and oftentimes kind of connects herself to Don Young, who was our 50-year representative in the state, and he was a Republican,” Brandon Boylan, a political science professor at the University of Alaska Fairbanks, told USA TODAY.

Florida carries out execution on primary day

James Powel and Amanda Lee Myers

Florida executed William Frances Silvia Jr. by lethal injection on Tuesday, the same day the state held its primaries.

Silvia, who was pronounced dead at 6:11 p.m. ET, became the 23rd person executed in the United States this year and the 13th in Florida. He was executed for the 2006 murder of his estranged wife and is the first of a series of three executions in the state to be carried out over three weeks.

Outgoing Gov. Ron DeSantis has overseen one of the busiest execution chambers in the nation over the past two years, with Florida carrying out 45% of U.S. executions in that period. Florida has seen 57% of the executions in the country this year.

DeSantis has faced criticism from death penalty opponents for speeding up the pace of executions due to political ambition ahead of the 2028 presidential election – particularly after the state held its first double execution in 16 years in July.

The Rev. Jeff Hood, Silvia’s spiritual adviser, called on DeSantis to attend the July execution of Dennis Sochor, saying in a statement to USA TODAY that the governor “has never had the guts to stand in that room.”

DeSantis has defended his aggressive execution of capital punishment as delivering justice for families.

“Some of the victims’ families have been waiting a long time,” DeSantis said last month. “And some of them are just like, ‘When are we going to get justice?'”

Who did Ron DeSantis endorse for Florida governor?

Terry Collins and John Pacenti

Question: Which candidate is Ron DeSantis endorsing to succeed him as Florida governor?

Answer: None.

As Republicans, nationally and statewide, pushed their support toward GOP primary favorite Rep. Byron Donalds, who also got a key endorsement from President Donald Trump, DeSantis’ refusal to endorse is apparently attributed to several factors. One includes Donalds’ early support for Trump’s 2024 presidential campaign, according to the Tallahassee Democrat, a member of the USA TODAY Network.

DeSantis is not just ignoring Donalds, but also chief Republican challengers, Lt. Gov. Jay Collins and former state House Speaker Paul Renner. The governor offered some insight Aug. 6 on why he isn’t endorsing a candidate such as Renner.

“People said when he ran, I said, ‘I didn’t advise him to run. Wasn’t because I didn’t think he would be a good governor. I think he’d be really good,” DeSantis said about Renner. “He’s got a great record of policy, but what’s your strategy to get known?’ How do you get known to people when you’re doing that?

Meanwhile, Rep. Randy Fine, who endorsed Donalds for governor, has taken exception to DeSantis’ position.

“I think that DeSantis is a coward,” Fine said. “I mean, he could have endorsed one of these people.”

The other Dan Sullivan running in Alaska

Phillip M. Bailey

There’s a bit of gamesmanship being played in the Alaska Senate primary, which is arguably the most consequential Aug. 18 contest.

Former Rep. Mary Peltola is a major recruit in the 2026 class of challengers that Democrats believe can take back control of the Senate this year. She’s running against Republican incumbent Dan S. Sullivan, a staunch Trump ally.

But the GOP is fuming because there’s another Republican candidate named Dan J. Sullivan, a retired teacher, who is also on the ballot, and some worry that this might confuse voters. He won a legal fight following claims that he ran with the intent to cause confusion at the ballot box, but NBC News is reporting a grand jury issued subpoenas to compel information from witnesses linked to his campaign as part of an ongoing investigation.

“Because of the trickery in the voting, the crooked, radical left Dumocrats have put up another man named ‘Dan Sullivan,’ and they did this to take votes away from our great senator of the same name. Democrats are trying to ‘trick’ Alaskans, and treat alaskan Voters with contempt,” President Donald Trump said in a social media post last Friday.

Alaska runs nonpartisan Senate primaries with the top four moving on to the general election. Peltola and Sen. Sullivan are expected to easily advance, but onlookers will be watching to see if the other candidate named Sullivan will, too.

Polls close in Florida

James Powel

Polls closed for the Florida primaries at 7 p.m. ET. Results are expected shortly.

Why is Ron DeSantis not running for Florida governor again?

Terry Collins, Cheryl McCloud and C. A. Bridges

Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis is not running for a third term because he has reached the limit of two consecutive terms permitted by the Florida Constitution.

DeSantis was first elected as governor in 2018 and then re-elected in 2022. His second term ends in January 2027. During his time in office, the share of Republican voters in Florida has grown to outnumber Democrats by over 1.4 million, theTallahassee Democrat, a member of USA TODAY Network, has reported.

Under DeSantis, Florida also saw growth in business and tourism, but also rising inflation and skyrocketing insurance costs. DeSantis has overseen a Republican dominance in the Florida Legislature, waged war on diversity, equity and inclusion programs (DEI) and what he called “wokeism.”

DeSantis is also known for reopening the state of Florida to business as the COVID-19 pandemic was just beginning, for overhauling the state education system and installing allies in leadership positions. The governor also appointed five of the state’s seven Supreme Court justices and successfully waged war against two constitutional amendments he didn’t support.

As governor, DeSantis was relentless in purging the state of undocumented immigrants, which the U.S. Department of Homeland Security cites as a model for the rest of the country, despite immigration experts having said Florida’s “blueprint” is unconstitutional and a major overreach of state authority. Last year, DeSantis’ administration created two controversial immigrant detention centers, Alligator Alcatraz and Deportation Depot, with another (“Panhandle Pokey“) in the works.

Trump supports Byron Donalds’ bid for Florida governor

Jay Stahl and John Kennedy

Trump-backed Rep. Byron Donalds leads a crowded primary of Florida Republicans in the quest to succeed Gov. Ron DeSantis.

Polls show that GOP voters are likely to elect the three-term Naples congressman, a sign that Trump’s endorsement is still the golden ticket for success at the ballot box in red states.

DeSantis, who is more popular than Trump among Florida Republicans, has sat out the chance to pick his successor. For a time, his wife Casey DeSantis was rumored as a potential rival to Donalds, but that idea never materialized.

Donalds has tied himself to Trump on immigration, transgender rights and parental oversight over their children’s education and vaccine compliance.

What we’re watching in Wyoming

Sarah D. Wire

In Wyoming, GOP Rep. Harriet Hageman has President Donald Trump’s support to replace retiring Republican Sen. Cynthia Lummis, and she is expected to win.

Wyoming has a single House seat, and the race to replace Hageman has turned into a bit of a free-for-all. The nine-person race has seen millions of dollars in spending as well as infighting over money, lawsuits, candidate forums and more.

Candidates to watch in the House race include Wyoming Secretary of State Chuck Gray, Reid Rasner and Steve Friess, the son of mega-millionaire Foster Friess.

Who is running for Senator in Florida?

Terry Collins

Five candidates are vying in a U.S. Senate special election in Florida on Tuesday to finish the term of Marco Rubio, who became President Donald Trump’s secretary of state last year.

For Democrats, there’s Florida state Rep. Angie Nixon, a democratic socialist, who’s running in the Senate Democratic primary against Alex Vindman, the retired Army lieutenant colonel who gave critical evidence during Trump’s first impeachment case in 2019.

On the Republican side, incumbent Sen. Ashley Moody, appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis in 2025 and currently holding the seat, is the prohibitive favorite in the primary as she seeks the GOP nomination for the term’s final two years, buoyed by Trump’s endorsement.

Moody is facing three challengers, including technology consultant Chris Gleason, physician Dr. Neelam Taneja Perry, and businessman Ernest “Ernie” Rivera.

Democrats try to undo 32-year losing streak in race to replace Ron DeSantis

Jay Stahl and James Call

Florida Democrats hope a former Republican will erase their three-decades-long losing streak in Florida.

Former Rep. David Jolly is the frontrunner for the Democratic Party nomination for Florida governor, and the party has reason to believe Trump’s sinking approval ratings could help woo voters in November.

But in a reliably red state, Jolly is still unlikely to prevail over a Republican candidate, according to Charles Zelden, a political scientist at Nova Southeastern University in Fort Lauderdale.

“Florida’s still likely to break Democrats’ heart,” Zelden said. “They’ll come close, but the odds still are in favor of the Republicans.” 

The last Democrat who won statewide is Nikki Fried, the state’s former agriculture commissioner who now serves as the party’s Florida chair, in 2018, the year DeSantis won.

It has been 32 years since a Democrat won Florida’s governorship: Former Gov. Lawton Chiles did it in 1994.

What do polls say about the Florida governor’s race?

James Powel

Polls of the Florida gubernatorial primaries show Rep. Byron Donalds atop the Republican field and David Jolly, a former Republican, leading the Democratic pack.

Donalds had a 31-point lead over GOP rival James Fishback in a mid-July Cygnal Political poll of 500 likely Republican voters, with 43% of respondents saying they preferred him as the GOP nominee. A late-July poll by Quantus Insights showed Donalds hitting just under the 50% mark.

The Democratic race is less polled. The most recent survey of the race was conducted by Targoz Market Research in late July showed Jolly getting 47% of the vote from likely voters, though 42% of respondents said they did not know who they would vote for.

Who is running for Florida governor?

Sarah D. Wire

In the Republican field, Rep. Byron Donalds is endorsed by President Donald Trump and has long branded himself as a MAGA supporter. He is a prominent member of the House Freedom Caucus and in 2023 challenged Kevin McCarthy in the race to become House speaker, forcing 15 rounds of voting. Donalds also put his name in to replace McCarthy 10 months later when he was ousted from the speakership.

Donalds has raised $90 million so far and most polls show him with a double-digit lead.

There are 10 other Republicans seeking the nomination. Lt. Gov. Jay Collins and far-right activist James Fishback are the leading challengers to Donalds.

Gov. Ron DeSantis hasn’t endorsed in the race, but Collins has branded himself as “DeSantis-appointed.”

Fishback has courted support among young men in the inflammatory online alt-right “groyper” movement and has support of white nationalist Nick Fuentes as well as Tucker Carlson.

Also running are former Florida House Speaker Paul Renner; business owner and attorney Rachel Rodriguez; farmer and business owner James Shaw; retired firefighter Jim Holcomb; business owner Arthur Joseph McCaffrey; retiree Daniel Nokovich; aircraft mechanic Caneste Succe; and businessman Bobby Williams.

There are six Democrats seeking the nomination, with former Republican Rep. David Jolly as the front-runner. Florida hasn’t elected a Democratic governor since 1994.

The other five Democratic candidates are criminal justice advocate Evelyn Castillo-Bach; health care professional Thomas Eloy Fernandez; teacher Dayna Marie Foster; state Rep. Dotie Joseph; and community activist Stephann Norman.

Voters weigh new congressional districts

Phillip M. Bailey

Part of the Aug. 18 primary election intrigue is that it will be the first contest in Florida since the Republican-controlled legislature joined President Donald Trump’s mid-decade redistricting war by redrawing its congressional maps in 2026.

Under the new boundaries, crafted by Gov. Ron DeSantis’ administration, 21 of the state’s 28 districts were significantly changed cutting the number of Democratic-leaning seats from eight to four.

As a result, Reps. Jared Moskowitz and Debbie Wasserman Schultz were forced into new areas where they are now fighting for their political futures against progressive populists.

Moskowitz was representing Florida’s 23rd Congressional District, but he is now running in the newly drawn 25th district. Wasserman Schultz, a former DNC chair, currently represents the 25th District, but she is running in the reshaped 20th District, which is a plurality-Black area now, against a crowded field.

Some Florida Republicans have warned that creating more GOP-friendly districts as a strategy to keep control of the U.S. House of Representatives may not work in the long run. Democrats have responded by making similar gerrymandering moves in state legislatures they control.

The maneuver also dilutes heavily Republican districts, as some GOP legislators have warned.

“If the objective was to ensure more Republican members of Congress, I think that’s very risky,” state Sen. Don Gaetz, who sponsored the new map, told reporters back in April. “I’m not sure that will be achieved.”

Democratic socialists face uphill battle in Florida

Sarah D. Wire, Terry Collins and Phillip M. Bailey

Three democratic socialist candidates are looking to upset mainstream liberals in Florida’s primaries.

The trio faces an uphill battle given the anti-socialism sentiment in South Florida, which has a large population of immigrants who fled communist and socialist Latin American governments such as the Castro regime in Cuba.

“It could be a very long and challenging night for them,” Tara Newsom, a political science professor at St. Petersburg College, in St. Petersburg, Florida.

California holds special election to replace Swalwell

Sarah D. Wire

Voters in California’s San Francisco Bay area on Tuesday will choose between two Democratic candidates in a special general election to serve out the remaining term of former Democratic U.S. Rep. Eric Swalwell, who resigned from Congress after sexual assault and misconduct allegations.

In California elections, the two candidates who receive the most votes in a primary proceed to the general election.

State Sen. Aisha Wahab and Melissa Hernandez, a Bay Area Rapid Transit director, received the most votes during the June primary to move on to Tuesday’s special general election.

Wahab has the backing of the Congressional Progressive Caucus; Hernandez has support from the NewDem Action Fund.

Whoever wins the special election will fill Swalwell’s seat through January.

Wahab and Hernandez also snagged the top two spots in the regular primary. The winner of the regular general election in November will serve a full, two-year term.

Justice Department sends election monitors to Florida and Wyoming

Sarah D. Wire

The Justice Department has sent election monitors to observe primary election activities in Florida and Wyoming, it announced Tuesday.

DOJ sent four Civil Rights Division attorneys to Miami-Dade County, Florida, and two Civil Rights Division attorneys to Laramie County, Wyoming.

The Justice Department has deployed election monitors for decades. During this primary season, DOJ has deployed over 75 monitors across five states and to over 200 polling locations. During the 2022 midterms, the DOJ sent monitors to nine states, according to the department.

Trump again votes by mail despite criticizing it

Sarah D. Wire and Joey Garrison

President Donald Trump voted by mail in Florida’s Republican primary, according to the White House, even as he rails on mail-voting as an “inherently corrupt” method of voting that is akin to cheating.

Trump returned his mail ballot on Aug. 13 for the primary, which features the GOP gubernatorial primary that includes Trump-backed candidate Rep. Byron Donalds.

When do polls close today?

James Powel

Here’s when polls close across the states with primaries today.

• Florida: Most polls in Florida will close at 7 p.m. ET, though some parts of the state in the Central Time Zone will remain open until 8 p.m. ET.
• Wyoming:Polls in Wyoming close at 9 p.m. ET.
• Alaska: Polls close in most of Alaska at 12 a.m. ET with portions of the Aleutian Islands seeing polls close at 1 a.m. ET