ORMOND BEACH, Fla. — Republican Jimmy Patronis won a special election Tuesday in Florida’s 1st Congressional District, bolstered by President Donald Trump’s endorsement to fill a vacant seat in reliably Republican northern Florida and despite national Democrats pouring millions into the race.
Patronis, the state’s chief financial officer, fended off a challenge from Democrat Gay Valimont even though she far outraised and outspent him. He will fill the northwest Florida seat vacated by former Rep. Matt Gaetz, who was chosen to be Trump’s attorney general but withdrew from consideration amid allegations of sexual misconduct, which he has denied.
Valimont benefited from the outrage of national donors alarmed by the early months of Trump’s second term but was ultimately not able to pull off what would have been a massive upset in a district both Trump and Gaetz won by more than 30 points last year.
The mood was celebratory at a waterfront restaurant in Pensacola, where congratulatory text messages were already lighting up Patronis’ phone as early results were posted Tuesday night. Patronis worked the crowd of about 100 people shaking hands and giving hugs, his wife Katie and two sons in tow.
In Florida's 6th Congressional District, Republican state Sen. Randy Fine won his race against Democratic challenger Josh Weil.
Fine was on track for a much narrower victory than the 33-point margin by which Mike Waltz won the district in November, according to early returns.
The narrowing margins may signal a shift in public sentiment, driven by unusually strong Democratic enthusiasm in a traditionally Republican stronghold. It’s happening less than five months since the presidential election and following a strong fundraising surge among Democrats worried about the aggressive overhaul of government initiated by Trump in his first few months in office.
Fine had faced growing pressure during the race’s final days as some Republicans publicly criticized his campaign and fundraising efforts. His victory ends Democratic hopes to score a huge upset in a district that was heavily supportive of Trump in November.
The race to fill the seat vacated by Waltz when he was tapped to become Trump’s national security adviser received national attention. Democrats poured money into Weil’s campaign to outraise Fine by nearly tenfold, attempting to flip a seat where the president won by more than 30 points.
Fine, a self-described “conservative firebrand,” ran with Trump’s endorsement.
On social media, Trump congratulated Fine for “a great WIN against a massive CASH AVALANCHE.”
National Republican operatives worried in the weeks leading up to the election that Fine needed more money to combat Weil’s eye-popping $9 million compared to Fine’s $1 million, which drew national attention from political operatives questioning whether this race would embarrass Republicans less than 100 days into Trump’s administration.
Yet that wasn’t the case for Democrats. For weeks, national leaders have attributed Weil’s fundraising success to what they characterized as widespread outrage about the Trump administration’s overhaul of the federal government. That outrage failed to materialize in large enough numbers to overturn the outcome in the reliably Republican district, foiling Democrats’ hope to pull off a huge upset that would have buoyed their party.
Fine was first elected to the Florida House in 2016 and ran each year as a representative until 2024 when he successfully won his election to the Florida Senate. He is known for his support of Israel and his efforts to restrict LGBTQ+ rights.
