ORMOND BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Republican Jimmy Patronis won a special election Tuesday in Florida’s First Congressional District.
Patronis, the state’s chief financial officer, dodged a challenge from Democrat Gay Vallimont, despite her overtaking and bored him. He fills a seat in northwestern Florida that is vacant by former Rep. Matt Gaetz, who was elected Trump’s attorney general but was withdrawn from consideration amid allegations of sexual misconduct.
Valimont benefited from the rage of national donors who were surprised in the early months of Trump’s second term, but ultimately failed to pull out what was massive upset in the district where both Trump and Gaetz won more than 30 points last year.
This mood was a celebration at a waterfront restaurant in Pensacola as early results were posted on Tuesday night. Patronis shook hands and hugged a crowd of about 100, leading his wife Katie and two sons.
In Florida’s 6th Congressional District, Republican state Sen. Randy Fein won the race against Democratic challenger Josh Weill.
Fine was on track due to a much narrower victory than Mike Waltz won the district in November, according to Early Returns.
The narrow margin could indicate a change in public sentiment, traditionally driven by an unusually strong democratic enthusiasm in Republican bases. It’s less than five months after the presidential election and is worried about an aggressive government overhaul that Trump launched in the first few months, following a strong surge in funding among Democrats.
Fine was facing increasing pressure on the final days of the race as some Republicans publicly criticised his campaign and fundraising. His victory will end the Democrats who hope to win a major upset in the districts that were highly supportive of Trump in November.
The race to fill the seats vacant by the waltz when he was tapped to become Trump’s national security adviser has attracted the public’s attention. Democrats have poured money into Weil’s campaign to try to flip seats where the president has won more than 30 points and pay a fine nearly ten times.
Fine, a self-proclaimed “conservative fire truck,” ran along with Trump’s support.
On social media, Trump congratulated him on “a big victory over a massive cash avalanche.”
In the weeks leading up to the election, the National Republican operative, who was worried in the weeks leading up to the election that Weil’s eye-opening compared to Fine’s $1 million, needed more money to fight $9 million, attracted the public’s attention from political operatives questioning whether the race would trouble Republicans within 100 days.
But that wasn’t the case for the Democrats. For weeks, national leaders have attributed Weil’s successful fundraising to what they characterized as widespread outrage over the Trump administration’s federal overhaul. That rage stunted the Democrats’ hopes to break away from the enormous upset that was sustaining their party, failing to make it happen in enough numbers to certainly overturn the outcome of the Republican district.
Fine was first elected to the Florida home in 2016 and was held annually as a representative until 2024 when he successfully voted for the Florida Senate. He is known for his support for Israel and for his efforts to limit LGBTQ+ rights.
