US news | The Guardian
· collected 2026-08-19 · by Sam Levin and Richard Luscombe
Angie Nixon, a state representative and member of the Democratic Socialists of America, won the Democratic primary in the Florida US Senate race. She defeated Alexander Vindman with significantly less funding, $975,000 compared to his $16.3 million. Nixon's campaign focused on opposing Governor DeSantis's policies, while Vindman's campaign focused on the general election against Republican Ashley Moody. National Democratic leaders praised Nixon's victory, highlighting her background as a former union organizer and her dedication to fighting for Florida.
Written by the local model on 2026-08-19,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Florida Primary Results
- Angie Nixon projected winner in Florida Democratic Senate primary
+ NBC News projects that Angie Nixon will win the Democratic nomination for U.S. Senate in Florida.
- Jolly thanks supporters after projected win in Florida Democratic gubernatorial primary
+ Charlie Crist is projected to win the Democratic nomination for Governor of Florida.
- Rep. Donalds celebrates projected win in Florida GOP governor primary
+ Rep. Matt Gaetz's ally, Rep. Byron Donalds, is projected to win the Republican nomination for Governor of Florida.
Takeaways from Tuesday Primaries
- Trump endorsement can't lift Mills
+ Embattled and scandal-ridden Republican Rep. Cory Mills lost his reelection bid in Florida Tuesday.
- GOP Rep. Cory Mills loses his Florida primary amid investigations
+ NBC News projects that Ryan Elijah, a former TV news anchor and NFL sideline reporter, will win the Republican nomination for Congress in Florida's 7th District.
Socialist Movement Gains Ground
- Socialists capture major Florida victory on hit-or-miss night for Trump-endorsed primary candidates
+ A socialist, Angie Nixon, is projected to win the Democratic Senate primary in Florida.
- Sunshine State socialist scores shocking Senate upset despite being heavily outspent
+ Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) member and Democratic state Rep. Angie Nixon scored a massive upset in the state's Democratic primary for U.S. Senate.
Other Primary Results
- GOP Sen. Dan Sullivan, Democrat Mary Peltola advance to Alaska Senate race
+ Senator Dan Sullivan is projected to win the Republican nomination for U.S. Senate in Alaska.
- Wasserman Schultz wins Florida’s 20th District Democratic primary, NBC News projects
+ Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz is projected to win the Democratic nomination for Congress in Florida's 20th District.
Investigations and Controversies
- Mills faces a House Ethics Committee investigation; a judge issued a restraining order against him last year after he was accused by his former girlfriend of threatening to distribute sexually explicit videos of her.
- The loss makes him the latest member of a relatively rare set of Republican candidates who lost GOP primaries even with Trump’s blessing.
Written for “Florida Primary Election Results” on 2026-08-31,
grounded in this article and the 19 other(s) covering the same event.
In an upset for the Democratic establishment, progressive Angie Nixon won the party’s US Senate primary in Florida, beating former army intelligence officer Alexander Vindman.
asserted
Nixon → win → Vindman
Nixon, a state representative and member of the Democratic Socialists of America, had significantly less funding going into the primary – with $975,000 to Vindman’s $16.3m at the end of July, according to Florida Politics.
uncertain
Nixon → have → Politics
Vindman served on the national security council in Donald Trump’s first term and became a well-known whistleblower and witness in the president’s first impeachment, centered on Trump pressuring Volodymyr Zelenskyy, Ukraine’s president, to investigate Joe Biden.
asserted
Trump → serve → Biden
Democrats have their sights set on upsetting Republican Ashley Moody in the US Senate general election.
asserted
sights → have → election
Moody, picked by DeSantis to replace Marco Rubio when he became secretary of state last year, won what was almost a token primary election to run in November to serve the remaining two years of Rubio’s term.
asserted
what → pick → term
Nixon, who was born in Jacksonville, has aggressively opposed DeSantis’s policies, including with a sit-in at the governor’s office this spring to protest Republican redistricting, the Miami Herald reported.
asserted
Herald → bear → redistricting
That demonstration resulted in her facing misdemeanor charges of trespassing and resisting, which she is fighting in court.
asserted
she → result → court
Vindman’s campaign had been focused on Moody, not his primary opponent, and he did not agree to debate Nixon, despite her public calls for him to take the stage with her.
asserted
him → focus → her
“Floridians don’t want the establishment in Washington DC deciding who their Democratic nominee and US senator is going to be,” Nixon told the Tampa Bay Times in an earlier interview.
asserted
Nixon → want → interview
“I’m someone who’s willing to debate.
asserted
who → ’m → ?
He’s not.
asserted
He → ’ → ?
I’m someone who doesn’t have to be briefed on the issues Floridians are facing because I’ve been fighting the attacks alongside them for nearly two decades.”
asserted
I → ’m → decades
Vindman praised Nixon in a post on Tuesday night after the race was called, saying she “ran a strong campaign”.
asserted
she → praise → campaign
“I will be standing by her side in the fight against Ashley Moody.
asserted
I → stand → Moody
I hope you’ll join me,” he wrote, adding: “Who would’ve ever thought that a Jewish refugee would make it to the US Army, to the White House, and to becoming a candidate for the US Senate.
asserted
refugee → hope → Senate
Vindman had been expected to win the primary given his huge fundraising advantage.
asserted
Vindman → expect → advantage
Nixon’s supporters had pointed to one poll suggesting that she would perform better against Moody in November than Vindman, though that poll projected the Republican incumbent would win against either Democrat.
asserted
incumbent → point → Democrat
“We did it ya’ll,” Nixon posted on Tuesday night.
asserted
Nixon → do → night
“Thank you to every person that put their heart into this campaign.”
asserted
that → thank → campaign
National Democratic leaders praised Nixon’s victory, with Chuck Schumer, the Senate Democratic leader, and Kirsten Gillibrand, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee chair, releasing a statement noting her background as a former union organizer, saying she had “dedicated her career to fighting for Florida”.
asserted
she → praise → Florida
Nixon’s victory follows a series of primary wins for Democratic Socialists of America-backed candidates across the country, including in primaries in Philadelphia, Colorado, Michigan and New York City.
asserted
victory → follow → Philadelphia
But establishment Democrats prevailed in other Florida races this week, in the first election in the state after redistricting.
asserted
Democrats → prevail → redistricting
Debbie Wasserman Schultz, an 11-term congresswoman and former chair of the Democratic National Committee, defeated Elijah Manley, a 27-year-old substitute teacher who was endorsed by a progressive group.
asserted
who → defeat → group
Wasserman Schultz had faced criticisms for running in a district that has a plurality of Black voters and has long been represented by a Black Democrat.
asserted
that → face → Democrat
Wasserman Schultz’s previous district was broken up by Republicans’ gerrymandered congressional maps, and she chose not to run in the district where she lives, but in a newly drawn one that was solidly blue.
asserted
that → break → one
Jared Moskowitz, a two-term congressman and centrist Democrat, defeated a democratic socialist challenger, running in a new coastal seat extending from Delray Beach to Miami Beach.
asserted
Moskowitz → defeat → Beach
Moskowitz was up against Oliver Larkin, a 34-year-old who called for universal healthcare and free tuition at public universities and has supported abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE).
asserted
who → call → Enforcement
Moskowitz was the first congressional Democrat to back Trump’s “department of government efficiency” (Doge) initiative, which dismantled the US Agency for International Development.
asserted
which → back → Development
Moskowitz also faced criticism from Larkin over his support for a Republican-backed law that expanded ICE’s detention authority.
asserted
that → face → authority
The centrist congressman has also been a staunch supporter of Israel and voted against a resolution to restrict US military involvement in Iran.
asserted
congressman → vote → Iran
