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· collected 2026-08-18 · by Caroline Linton, Kaia Hubbard, Caitlin Yilek
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.
Three states are holding primaries on Tuesday, with Florida deciding its nominees for both governor and for Senate.
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Florida → hold → Senate
In Alaska, Sen. Dan Sullivan is facing several competitors — including
— in the nonpartisan top-four primary.
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Sullivan → face → primary
Floridians will also be voting in primaries in new congressional districts after
boundaries to give Republicans an advantage in 24 of the state's 28 districts.
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Floridians → vote → districts
Here are the major races to watch today:
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races → watch → ?
Florida governor
Florida hasn't elected a Democratic governor since 1994 and DeSantis is prevented from running again due to term limits.
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DeSantis → elect → limits
In 2018, DeSantis won by less than a single point.
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DeSantis → win → point
By 2022, he won by 20 points — transforming Florida from being seen as a swing state to being solidly Republican.
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he → win → state
Rep. Byron Donalds, first elected in 2020 to represent Naples, Fort Myers and the surrounding area, is backed by President Trump and has long branded himself as a "Make America Great Again" member of the House.
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America → elect → House
He is a prominent member of the House Freedom Caucus and in 2023, challenged Kevin McCarthy in the race to become speaker, forcing 15 rounds of voting.
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He → challenge → voting
Donalds also put his name in the bid to replace McCarthy 10 months later when he was ousted from the speakership.
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he → put → speakership
In addition to Mr. Trump's backing, Donalds has amassed a significant war chest, having raised $90 million so far.
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Donalds → amass → million
He has also held a commanding lead in polls.
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He → hold → polls
While DeSantis has not endorsed in the race, Collins has branded himself as "DeSantis-appointed," but it's likely a race for second place given Donalds' lead.
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it → endorse → lead
Collins tried earlier this summer to get Fishback booted from the ballot, alleging Fishback had not met the state's seven-year minimum residency requirement.
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Fishback → try → requirement
The case was ultimately thrown out by a judge.
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case → throw → judge
Fishback, a 31-year-old Florida native, has gained momentum among young men in the "groyper" movement online and has support of Nick Fuentes and Tucker Carlson.
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Fishback → gain → Fuentes
Fishback has taunted Donalds with racist comments, calling him a "slave to donors," a "token Black" in Congress and accusing him of wanting to turn Florida into a "Section 8 ghetto."
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Fishback → taunt → ghetto
As the well-funded front-runner, Donalds generally does not acknowledge Fishback's comments.
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Donalds → fund → comments
Fishback has raised little money and does not stand much of a chance of succeeding on Tuesday, but he has pushed white nationalism into the governor's race and caused a splinter in the GOP.
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he → raise → GOP
Jolly represented the St. Petersburg area from 2014 to 2016, and is the second prominent Republican-turned-Democrat to run for governor in Florida in two cycles.
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Jolly → represent → cycles
In 2022, former Gov. Charlie Crist — who served as a Republican as governor before becoming a Democrat and defeating Jolly in the 2016 election — lost to DeSantis by nearly 20 points.
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who → serve → points
Crist is now running for St. Petersburg mayor.
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Crist → run → mayor
When Marco Rubio became secretary of state, DeSantis appointed Ashley Moody to his Senate seat, and she is now running to serve out the remainder of his term.
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she → become → term
Moody was elected the state's attorney general twice, defeating her Democratic challenger in 2022 by more than 20 points.
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Moody → elect → points
Moody faces three Republican challengers on Tuesday, although she is expected to win the nomination.
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she → face → nomination
Democrats Alex Vindman and Angie Nixon are duking it out for the Democratic nomination.
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Vindman → duke → nomination
Vindman, a retired lieutenant colonel, served on the National Security Council as an expert on Ukraine during Mr. Trump's first term.
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Vindman → serve → term
He became a key witness in Mr. Trump's first impeachment, testifying he heard Mr. Trump on a phone call pressure the Ukrainian president to investigate Joe Biden.
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Trump → become → Biden
Vindman was later forced out at the NSC.
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Vindman → force → NSC
His brother, Eugene, who also reported the phone call as being improper, was elected to Congress in 2024 from Virginia.
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who → report → Virginia
Nixon, a state representative from Jacksonville, led the Democratic protest against DeSantis' new congressional map.
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Nixon → lead → map
A labor organizer, she is touting her progressive support, including from unions and progressive Rep. Maxwell Frost, who represents the Orlando area.
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who → tout → area
Earlier this year, DeSantis pushed through a new congressional map to favor Republicans in four more districts after the creation of majority Black voting districts in some states.
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DeSantis → push → states
Rep. Darren Soto's district, which was protected by the Voting Rights Act, was redrawn to become more favorable to Republicans.
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which → protect → Republicans
of the Voting Rights Act that required theSoto is running unopposed for the Democratic nomination, and seven Republicans are running on Tuesday to take him on.
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Republicans → require → him
Republican Thomas Chalifoux Jr., Soto's challenger in 2024 who won more than 40% of the vote under the old lines, is running again, as is Marcus Carter, who ran in 2024 on the general election ballot as a NPA candidate.
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who → win → candidate
Republican Dan Green, who worked in the first Trump administration, is touting his ties to the president.
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who → work → president
He has been endorsed by seven members of Congress, although none from Florida.
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He → endorse → Florida
Democratic Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz's current district was also affected.
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district → affect → ?
She's now running in the neighboring 20th District, which is still a majority Black district and has been represented by a Black representative since the 1980s.
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which → run → 1980s
…and 30 more, not listed.
