Angie Nixon at St Pete Pride on June 27. (Photo by Azlyn Cato)
Angie Nixon will run against incumbent Republican Ashley Moody for the U.S. Senate, Florida Democrats decided Aug. 18 by double-digit margin.
Nixon’s victory concluded a primary that had some wondering whether progressive Democrats’ wins around the nation would carry into Florida.
Nixon, carrying endorsements of several of Florida’s progressive Democratic legislators, enjoyed a significantly smaller campaign account compared to challenger Alex Vindman.
With 88% of votes in, the Associated Press reported Nixon had captured 55.7% of votes to Vindman’s 44.3%. Nixon’s share of the votes equates to more than 660,000 while Vindman’s is about 530,000.
According to FEC reports through July 29, Nixon had spent nearly $710,000 and received nearly $975,000, with ending cash on hand of $264,978.
Vindman received $16.27 million and spent $9 million, leaving him with $7.26 million cash on hand as of July 29.
In her victory speech, Nixon called for unity but also took aim at her new opponent.
“We are strongest when we are united, and it’s going to take all of us to win in November,” Nixon said.
She turned her attention to Moody.
“Ashley Moody can call me whatever she wants, she can call us whatever she wants, but in November she will call me senator,” Nixon said to applause.
The race, considered a special election, was for the seat vacated by now-Secretary of State Marco Rubio. He was elected to a six-year term in 2022 but, given the vacancy, the seat was up for grabs this cycle. Moody is in her position as Gov. Ron DeSantis’ appointee. This would be her first Senate election. She previously won two elections for Florida attorney general.
Moody won the GOP primary Tuesday with nearly 80% of votes, as of the same time the the AP posted the above Democratic results. Following the race, Moody posted to social media: “While I’m so proud of what we’ve achieved, I am renewing that promise to you tonight. I am YOUR fighter. YOU are my bosses. And I will NOT let you down,” calling her appointment to the Senate “an honor of a lifetime.”
In a social media post, Vindman committed to standing with Nixon for the General Election.
Angie Nixon will run against incumbent Republican Ashley Moody for the U.S. Senate, Florida Democrats decided Tuesday by double-digit margin.
Nixon’s victory concluded a primary that had some wondering whether progressive Democrats’ wins around the nation would carry into Florida.
Nixon, carrying endorsements of several of Florida’s progressive Democratic legislators, enjoyed a significantly smaller campaign account compared to challenger Alex Vindman.
With 88% of votes in, the Associated Press reported Nixon had captured 55.7% of votes to Vindman’s 44.3%. Nixon’s share of the votes equates to more than 660,000 while Vindman’s is about 530,000.
According to FEC reports through July 29, Nixon had spent nearly $710,000 and received nearly $975,000, with ending cash on hand of $264,978.
Vindman received $16.27 million and spent $9 million, leaving him with $7.26 million cash on hand as of July 29.
In her victory speech, Nixon called for unity but also took aim at her new opponent.
“We are strongest when we are united, and it’s going to take all of us to win in November,” Nixon said.
She turned her attention to Moody.
“Ashley Moody can call me whatever she wants, she can call us whatever she wants, but in November she will call me senator,” Nixon said to applause.
The race, considered a special election, was for the seat vacated by now-Secretary of State Marco Rubio. He was elected to a six-year term in 2022 but, given the vacancy, the seat was up for grabs this cycle. Moody is in her position as Gov. Ron DeSantis’ appointee. This would be her first Senate election. She previously won two elections for Florida attorney general.
Moody won the GOP primary Tuesday with nearly 80% of votes, as of the same time the the AP posted the above Democratic results. Following the race, Moody posted to social media: “While I’m so proud of what we’ve achieved, I am renewing that promise to you tonight. I am YOUR fighter. YOU are my bosses. And I will NOT let you down,” calling her appointment to the Senate “an honor of a lifetime.”
In a social media post, Vindman committed to standing with Nixon for the General Election.
Who is she?
Nixon was born and raised in Jacksonville and bills herself as a union organizer and mother.
She’s been a member of the Florida House since 2020. During the most recent legislative session, she was Democratic ranking member on the Education Administration Subcommittee and was a member of the State Affairs Committee, Information Technology Budget & Policy Subcommittee, and Industries & Professional Activities Subcommittee.
Her speeches at the Florida Capitol frequently referenced the middle class, with her closing arguments on Election Day advocating Medicare for all and that the decision is “OURS” not “billionaire donors or the establishment politics of DC.”
Her margin of victory seems to reflect that sentiment, beating a candidate who out-raised her by about $15 million by 12 percentage points.
Nixon was endorsed by Democratic U.S. Reps. Maxwell Frost, Ilhan Omar, Rashida Tlaib, and Ayanna Pressley.
She has support from a bundle of legislative Democrats including Sens. Rosalind Osgood, Tracie Davis, Lavon Bracy Davis, Kristen Arrington, and Reps. Yvonne Hinson, RaShon Young, Michele Rayner, Dianne Hart, Felicia Robinson, Ashley Gantt, and Anna Eskamani.
During her six years in Tallahassee, Nixon hasn’t been able to get much passed in the GOP-controlled House — although she’s not the only one, given the GOP’s supermajorities in both legislative chambers.
Nixon made headlines earlier this year after she staged a sit-in in the governor’s office. She wanted him to reject the GOP-led congressional redistricting efforts. She’s become known for her activism, sometimes on the House floor, including protests against the Legislature’s approvals of Gov. Ron DeSantis’ congressional redistricting maps in 2022 and earlier this year.
Vindman did not commit to debating Nixon in the primary.
Middle East politics
One area the two differed on was Israel and Palestine.
Vindman is a stalwart supporter of Israel, but critical of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and supportive of a two-state solution between Israelis and Palestinians.
Nixon has been outspoken in support Palestinian rights, sponsoring a Florida House resolution calling for a ceasefire just a month after the 2023 attack on Israel by Hamas.
Nixon was formally reprimanded by her colleagues after she blared a bullhorn on the House floor during a contentious fight over congressional redistricting.
“I don’t care if I get a reprimand. I don’t even care if they expel me, because I’m standing up for my elders,” Nixon said. “Stop doing illegal things and I won’t call you out with a pink microphone.”
After the races were decided Tuesday night, Moody posted to social media a video of Nixon’s bullhorn stunt on the House floor.
“Ashley Moody and the corporate politicians of Washington, they like to label us. It’s easier trying to make those afraid of me than to defend the choices they keep making to make our lives harder. They look at this movement and they call us extreme, they call us radical, but I think people see through that, I won’t let them define me and I know you will always know where I stand,” Nixon said.
Vindman is a retired U.S. Army lieutenant colonel who was awarded a Purple Heart. He retired from the military in 2020, ending a 21-year career.
Vindman moved to Florida in 2023. He announced his candidacy in January. His twin brother represents Virginia’s 7th congressional district, elected two years ago.
Vindman was a witness in the 2019 impeachment of President Donald Trump. He had listened to a phone call between Trump and Ukrainian PresidentVolodymyr Zelenskyy in which Trump asked Zelensky to investigate Hunter Biden.
This story was updated to include Nixon, Vindman, and Moody’s reactions.
This story is courtesy of Florida Phoenix.
Florida Phoenix is a nonprofit news site, free of advertising and free to readers, covering state government and politics with a staff of five journalists located at the Florida Press Center in downtown Tallahassee. Florida Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.
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