Florida Senate: Not Swing, But Still Battleground
By Jacob Rubashkin & Nathan L. Gonzales
After cycles of GOP success, Florida has shed its swing state status. But the Sunshine State is still competitive and should still be considered a battleground, particularly when the majority in the Senate hinges on a single seat.
Six years ago, Marco Rubio was running for president and content with leaving his Senate seat behind. Now, he’s seeking his third term in office and seemingly transitioned from a consensus future leader of the GOP to making sure he still has a place in President Donald Trump’s Republican Party.
Even though Democrats have fallen short in all of the big elections in Florida in recent years, there’s renewed energy building about the 2022 Senate race. Rep. Val Demings has emerged as the likely nominee at a time when the Democratic Party is looking to elevate Black women.
At the same time, when it comes to Florida, Democrats feel like Charlie Brown in his iconic scene with Lucy. Just when Democrats think victory is within reach, Lucy pulls the football away and Charlie Brown falls flat on his back.
The Lay of the Land
Republicans are very confident in a state where they consistently win by a couple of percentage points or less in key races. National Republican Senatorial Committee chairman Rick Scott, who holds Florida’s other Senate seat and served two terms as the state’s governor, recently said he believes that Florida is a “red state,” despite his three razor-thin victories over the past decade. …
