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'Invest in the South,' Angie Nixon Urges Democrats After Almost Ousting Florida Republican
"I'm proud of the race we ran," said the democratic socialist who challenged a Republican US senator, but "imagine what would have happened if we had more investment early on."
Nov 04, 2026
Although Angie Nixon wasn't among the Democrats who helped her party reclaim the US Senate on Tuesday, the democratic socialist's near-win in Florida—without establishment support—sent a clear message about what might be possible in the Sunshine State going forward.
After a "stunning" primary victory over establishment-backed Lt. Col. Alex Vindman in August, Nixon—a 42-year-old Black businesswoman and state representative from Jacksonville who belongs to both Democratic Socialists of America and the Working Families Party (WFP)—secured 48% of the vote in the general election, compared with Republican Sen. Ashley Moody's 50.9%, with over 95% of ballots tallied as of Wednesday afternoon.
Nixon refused to back off her progressive platform after her primary win, continuing to campaign on Medicare for All, free childcare, paid family and sick leave, a national rent freeze and eviction moratorium, a universal jobs program, ending wars, getting big money out of politics, and taxing billionaires in a state written off by the Democratic Party throughout the 21st Century.
"I'm proud of the race we ran. We helped drive turnout and broke the supermajority in the state House and Senate. 2028 is around the corner. LFG!" Nixon said on social media late Tuesday. "We invested in grassroots organizers and partnered with candidates down ballot. I'm so proud of the work we did helping to flip 17 House seats. Many of whom were candidates we partnered with in the primary. Imagine what would have happened if we had more investment early on."
As people across the country took note of her close race—and some called out the national Democratic Party and its leadership for not pouring into the contest—Nixon added early Wednesday, "Invest in the South."
Jonathan Cohn, political director of the group Progressive Mass, said on social media that "Angie Nixon sadly didn't win, but for a race the national party did not invest in, she did damn well."
Amanda Litman, president of Run for Something, which recruits and supports young Democrats to seek elected office, said that she's "not sure there's a federal candidate in the country who worked as hard—with as little national help—as Angie Nixon. What a star."
Stressing that Florida, now Trump's home state, "is the absolute epicenter of MAGA," political commentator Kyle Kulinski highlighted that "a democratic socialist nearly pulled off one of the biggest upsets in political history. What a tremendous campaign from Angie Nixon."
WFP national director Maurice Mitchell said in a statement that "we are incredibly proud of Angie's campaign and our part in it. But there is no hiding our anger, because this race was winnable."
"In the face of outsized spending and racist attacks, Angie's people-centered campaign came within inches of defeating an incumbent senator," he emphasized. "The Democratic establishment failed to invest in Angie, because she wasn't their preferred candidate."
"The Working Families Party is proud to have been the first national organization to endorse Angie," he continued, "and we're committed to recruiting and running powerful leaders like her all across the South."
Some critics directly called out Senate Minority Chuck Schumer (D-NY), who's expected to lead the chamber again when Democrats officially reclaim their majority in January.
"Never forget that Angie Nixon lost by three points after being snubbed by Schumer and the Dem establishment for running on a progressive, DSA-backed platform this cycle," said Jack Petocz, senior director of programs and communications at Gen-Z for Change.
Although Schumer didn't bother with the race, Nixon was endorsed by national leftist leaders, including Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-NY), and Congressional Progressive Caucus Chair Emerita Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.).
As the results rolled in late Tuesday, Jeremy Slevin, Sanders' communications director and senior adviser, pointed out that "Bernie held four rallies for Angie Nixon, had four staffers on the ground, contributed $330,000 to support her directly, and raised another $266,000. She's currently within about 2 points. Imagine if the establishment hadn't written this race off."
Jayapal said late Tuesday that "even though Angie Nixon did not pull it out, she ran an incredibly competitive race, and drove up votes down ballot for other candidates. She was underestimated and overspent at every step, but she never stopped being who she was and running on bold, progressive values. Thank you, Angie!!"
At The American Prospect, Naomi Bethune and James Baratta noted that "Moody will have to run again for a full term in 2028. Given how close the matchup between Moody and Nixon ended up, the energetic progressive insurgent is expected to try again."
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'She’s Going to Win,' Says Bernie Sanders After Weekend in Florida Backing Angie Nixon
"Trust me on this," Sanders said. "This is going to be a spark that is going to ignite the entire country."
Oct 19, 2026
Judging by the polls, progressive Democrat Angie Nixon faces an uphill battle as she contends for Florida’s US Senate seat. But after campaigning with her this weekend, Sen. Bernie Sanders is confident she's being underestimated.
"She’s going to win," Sanders (I-Vt.) wrote on social media Sunday night, after making four stops across a state that's long been written off as a GOP stronghold.
"They say Florida is a red state, but you know what I'm hearing?" Sanders said. "Working people everywhere are sick and tired of the same old politics and policies. They want real change."
Nixon, a state representative and former labor leader, has already shown that calls for change can galvanize voters. Running on what she's called a "Working Families Guarantee"—which includes Medicare for All, free childcare, paid leave, and stronger bargaining power for workers—she unexpectedly defeated the better-funded, establishment-backed centrist Alex Vindman in August's Democratic primary.
In an election season where Republicans are expected to face a reckoning over rising prices and shameless self-enrichment by President Donald Trump and his allies, Nixon's message seems to be resonating in Florida. Despite the past decade's massive influx of wealthy retirees, a strong base of working-class supporters, particularly in Florida's politically neglected Black communities, has mobilized behind her.
At a rain-drenched rally in Tampa on Saturday, about 2,200 people watched as Nixon spoke with what the Tampa Bay Times called "a preacher’s charisma," hitting back at Republican Sen. Ashley Moody’s attempts to characterize her platform as "radical."
"If believing that a child with cancer should get treatment they need whether their parents can afford it or not is radical, then call me radical," Nixon thundered. "Then I guess I'm a radical, Ashley. I guess I'm radical as hell."
"Where I come from, none of that is radical," she continued. "That is just plain common sense. That is basic human decency."
Nixon has called for Moody to be jailed over her actions as the state's attorney general. In 2024, Moody approved the diversion of $10 million from a Medicaid fraud settlement—which would have benefited low-income Floridians, including children—to political campaigns supporting Gov. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.) and other Republicans.
"Are you all ready to fight back?" Nixon shouted to a roaring crowd in Tallahassee on Sunday. "Are you all ready to put an end to the corruption that's driving up our prices and ruining our democracy?"
"Well, I am ready, too!" she said, as supporters stood behind her waving signs reading "Freeze the Rent," "Tax Billionaires," and "Protect Social Security."
While recent polls still show Nixon trailing Moody in the final weeks of the campaign, her fundraising in the third quarter of the year has soared, and other major figures in the Democratic Party from progressives like Rep. Maxwell Frost (D-Fla.) to establishment liberals like Sen. Ruben Gallego (D-Ariz.) have campaigned with her in person.
With gas prices continuing to soar as Trump threatens dramatic escalations in his war with Iran, signs of a coming electoral apocalypse for Republicans are flashing ever brighter.
Democrats now lead by around nine points on the generic congressional ballot, and Trump's approval has dipped to historic lows. The GOP's fundraising arms have begun diverting resources initially for swing states like Georgia and North Carolina to protect territory once thought safe—in South Carolina, Kansas, Ohio, and, yes, even Florida.
The 2026 cycle has already challenged the long-standing conventional wisdom that chasing Republicans to the right is a necessity to win voters in purple and red states.
With similar populist messaging, Abdul El-Sayed and Troy Jackson are leading Republican opponents in Michigan and Maine, respectively. James Talarico is favored to become the first Democrat to win a statewide election in Texas since the Clinton administration. Meanwhile, Dan Osborn, Josh Turek, Adam Hamilton, and Sherrod Brown are all hanging tough in states that Trump won by double digits in 2024.
But a win by Nixon—a member of the Democratic Socialists of America who, unlike other progressives, won her primary largely with support from the state's lowest-income, least college-educated constituencies—would signify more than just a backlash to "the most dangerous president in the history of the United States," Sanders said.
"This election is not only important for the people of Florida in getting a senator who is going to fight for you," Sanders told the Tallahassee crowd. "Trust me on this, after Angie wins, this is going to be a spark that is going to ignite the entire country."
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Led by Florida and Texas, US Book Bans Surge to Record 12,000
"In several cases, AI recommended banning books that were banned elsewhere, creating a snowball effect for frequently banned books while the expertise of librarians and the communities they serve are ignored."
Oct 05, 2026
PEN America released a report on Monday documenting nearly 12,000 book bans involving more than 7,300 individual titles in US schools during the 2025-2026 school year, which the organization said were the largest censorship case numbers it had ever recorded.
The state of Texas accounted for more than 8,100 book bans—roughly three-fourths of the nationwide total and more than double that of Florida, which was the second-most censorious state with over 3,200 book bans.
PEN America said that the surge in Texas book bans came from SB 13, a state law passed in 2025 that banned a broad array of books that censorship proponents view as "profane" or "indecent."
According to PEN America, the Texas book bans carried out over the last year have been particularly broad because officials in the state used artificial intelligence to make a recommended list of banned books.
"In several cases, AI recommended banning books that were banned elsewhere," the report notes, "creating a snowball effect for frequently banned books while the expertise of librarians and the communities they serve are ignored."
Sold, a 2006 young adult novel by journalist Patricia McCormick about a teenage girl in Nepal who gets sold into sexual slavery, was the most frequently banned book in the US.
Popular horror writer Stephen King was the most banned individual author, according to the report.
Kasey Meehan, director of PEN America’s Freedom to Read program, said that banning popular young adult titles was a particularly harmful policy given the broad decline in reading throughout the US.
"Schools should be doing everything possible to connect kids with reading by introducing them to engaging stories and formats," Meehan said. "Instead, many are doing the opposite, banning books that help kids see themselves in literature, deepen their understanding and empathy of others, and develop their imaginations."
Philomena Polefrone, senior manager of the Freedom to Read program, said the broad books bans documented by the PEN America report are due to "chilling directives from state politicians" that "have created chaos and fear."
"Unsure how to comply, districts are removing books en masse, sometimes with the ‘help’ of crude AI tools that only make the problem worse," Polefrone said. "Increasingly, these bans are invisible. Thousands of these cases are only recorded because of public information requests by Florida Freedom to Read and Texas Freedom to Read. Books paid for by taxpayers are being removed from shelves and the local community may not even know about it."
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Judge Lets Lawsuit Proceed After Police Target Miami Beach Resident Who Criticized Pro-Israel Mayor
"Ordering a police visit to an individual’s home to discuss the individual’s speech can constitute a restriction on speech that would support a viewpoint discrimination claim," wrote a federal judge.
Sep 29, 2026
A federal judge has allowed a First Amendment lawsuit to proceed against Miami Beach Mayor Steven Meiner after he allegedly had police sent to a resident's house to question her over a social media post criticizing his support for Israel.
Judge Cecilia Altonaga of the US District Court for the Southern District of Florida on Monday denied defendants' motion to dismiss claims filed on behalf of Miami Beach resident and veteran Raquel Pacheco.
Altonaga said that "ordering a police visit to an individual’s home to discuss the individual’s speech can constitute a restriction on speech that would support a viewpoint discrimination claim."
On January 12, a pair of Miami Beach police officers showed up at Pacheco's door to question her about a post she made on Facebook criticizing Meiner, an outspoken supporter of Israel and its military assault on Gaza, which has killed more than 74,000 Palestinians, including over 21,000 children.
Pacheco referred to Meiner as someone who "consistently calls for the death of all Palestinians" and "tried to shut down a theater for showing a movie that hurt his feelings," referring to his attempt to have an independent theater's lease terminated after it held screenings of No Other Land, an Oscar-winning documentary made by Palestinian and Israeli filmmakers about the displacement of Palestinians and demolition of homes by Israeli settlers in the occupied West Bank.
Video of the interaction shows police asking Pacheco if the post came from her account and ignoring her as she told them she would not speak to them without a lawyer.
"This is freedom of speech," Pacheco responded. "This is America, right?”
The officers acknowledged that Pacheco was “not going to jail” and did not claim that she had threatened Meiner. One of the officers then explained that "what we’re just trying to prevent is someone else getting agitated or agreeing with the statement."
He added that Pacheco's statements could "probably incite somebody to do something" before telling Pacheco to “refrain from posting things like that." The officers then left and Pacheco was never charged with a crime.
Represented by the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), Pacheco filed a lawsuit in March alleging that Miami Beach officials had used police power to violate her First Amendment rights and deter her from criticizing the mayor and Israel. The lawsuit described it as part of a broader effort by officials to chill pro-Palestinian speech.
Emails released weeks after the incident revealed that Meiner personally flagged Pacheco's post to police, referring to it as a "dangerous escalation. Speaking to reporters on February 4, he defended his decision to alert the cops, saying that Pacheco's post was "absolutely false" and referring to it as "age-old antisemitism."
But Altonaga said Meiner's statements supported Pacheco's allegation that "her viewpoint motivated Meiner’s decision to send police to her home," allowing her viewpoint discrimination claim against him to proceed.
The court also allowed the ADC to proceed with its claim that the City of Miami Beach itself—including the mayor and police chief—had demonstrated a broader pattern of viewpoint discrimination against pro-Palestinian speech. The lawsuit cites Meiner's attempt to shut down the local theater, as well as its law banning government contractors from boycotting Israeli businesses, including those operating in territories illegally occupied by Israel.
It also cites Meiner and other Miami Beach officials' repeated pattern of arguing with and cutting off Pacheco and other pro-Palestinian speakers during city commission meetings while allowing pro-Israel speakers to talk with little obstruction.
During one meeting, Meiner reduced public comments for pro-Palestinian speakers to 60 seconds when they criticized the police response to Pacheco while allowing speakers who defended the police action or criticized Pacheco's pro-Palestine viewpoint to speak for around two minutes uninterrupted.
Jenin Younes, ADC's president and national legal director, said Monday's ruling was "a significant victory for Raquel Pacheco, for the First Amendment, and for all Americans who care about the right to free speech and dissent."
"The city downplayed what happened to Ms. Pacheco as a routine police visit," Younes said. "The court disagreed, recognizing that sending police to someone’s home to question and intimidate them over their protected political speech can itself violate the First Amendment."
"The government does not have to arrest you, prosecute you, or formally censor you to violate the First Amendment," he added. "The chilling effect of these actions is obvious.”
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'Maybe Trump’s Neighbors Know Something He Doesn’t': Palm Beach County, Home to Mar-a-Lago, Passes Data Center Moratorium
Trump has said that communities that don't want data centers "want to end up being backwards and poor."
Sep 25, 2026
President Donald Trump has said every American should want a data center in their town. But his home county in Florida just voted to block them.
In a 6-0 vote, commissioners in Palm Beach County—home to the president's luxurious private club and second residence, Mar-a-Lago—voted to enact a one-year moratorium on the construction of new "large-scale" data centers that use at least 50 megawatts of power.
The moratorium, approved on Thursday, came after Palm Beach residents expressed concerns shared by Americans around the country who’ve seen data centers move into their communities. Palm Beach already has some smaller data centers. But in July, it rejected a proposal for the 600MW Project Tango, following warnings about its potential effects on local wetlands and on families’ pocketbooks.
"Many communities want the economic benefits that data centers bring, but we all fear the higher power bills, the negative environmental impact, disruptive noise, and the depletion of water resources," explained one supporter of the moratorium at a county commission meeting on Thursday, according to the local ABC affiliate.
A poll conducted last month by Embold Research and published by Heatmap Pro found that 75% of Americans now oppose the building of AI data centers in their area, including 61% who registered strong opposition. Aversion to data centers crosses party lines, with majorities of Democrats, Republicans, and independents viewing them negatively.
As AI companies spend tens of millions bankrolling Trump and Republican candidates, members of the president's Cabinet, including Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick and Energy Secretary Chris Wright, have scoffed at Americans' concerns about the tremendous water and energy use of data centers, which have been well documented as jacking up utility prices.
In a social media post last month, Trump himself said the only reason communities would not want a data center nearby is if they "want to end up being backwards and poor." Before that, he said that "smart communities" were "begging for them."
Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.), who has become one of Capitol Hill's leading critics of data centers and the artificial intelligence models they power, has said that if Trump truly finds data centers so desirable, he should “lead by example” by having his friend and megadonor, tech billionaire Elon Musk, build one at Mar-a-Lago.
"Trump says communities that oppose data centers will end up 'backwards' and 'poor,'" Sanders remarked Friday on social media. "Yesterday, Mar-a-Lago’s own Palm Beach County passed a year-long ban on these facilities."
"Maybe," the senator said, "Trump’s neighbors know something he doesn’t."
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'Nothing Short of Torture': Critics Decry Abuse Affirmed by DHS Alligator Alcatraz Probe
"DHS needs to be dismantled and held accountable for this complete inhumanity," said Rep. Pramila Jayapal.
Sep 14, 2026
While US President Donald Trump publicly joked about giant reptiles devouring would-be escapees from the now-shuttered Alligator Alcatraz immigrant detention center in the Florida Everglades, a newly published report by the Department of Homeland Security's internal watchdog confirms that the biggest dangers facing detainees at the notorious lockup were found inside its walls.
The DHS Office of Inspector General (OIG) found that staff at Alligator Alcatraz—officially called the Florida Soft-Sided Facility (FSSF)—"complied with intake and use-of-force standards but did not comply with standards related to environmental health and safety, special management units, medical care, food service, personal hygiene, and recreation."
Affirming reports from human rights groups like Amnesty International, the OIG reported on September 11 that staff at the facility, which was operated by the state of Florida and private contractors, "confined 79 detainees in small metal enclosures—each offering about 18 square feet of floor space—for periods ranging from several minutes to nearly two hours."
"Facility staff described the small metal enclosures as 'calming areas' for detainees to de-escalate and have time alone," the report states. "Staff further maintained that detainees asked to spend time in the small metal enclosures. We found at least one instance in which the small metal enclosures may have been used as a disciplinary tool."
NEW: DHS's Inspector General releases a scathing report about the Everglades detention camp known as "Alligator Alcatraz." The OIG finds that the now-closed camp, violated multiple ICE standards.The OIG also confirms detainees were punished with placement in a metal cage in the Florida heat.🧵
[image or embed]
— Aaron Reichlin-Melnick (@reichlinmelnick.bsky.social) September 14, 2026 at 8:53 AM
While held in the cages, detainees—who reported being shackled and locked to the ground—were subjected to dangerously high temperatures and swarms of mosquitoes. Amnesty described the use of the cages as a form of torture.
"Use of these small metal enclosures for any reason is unprecedented among detention facilities OIG has inspected and presents significant risks to detainee health and safety," the DHS report notes.
Responding to the report's findings, Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal (D-Wash.) said on social media that "this is nothing short of torture."
"DHS needs to be dismantled and held accountable for this complete inhumanity," she added.
The OIG report additionally found that "FSSF did not provide detainees with sufficient living space, creating cramped conditions for detainees who spent most of their time in their housing units, which may harm detainees’ physical and mental health."
According to the OIG, detainees had about 28 square feet of living space each when the facility was at maximum capacity, well below the 75-square-foot DHS benchmark.
Three-quarters of the detainees interviewed by the OIG said they did not have access to clean drinking water.
The OIG also found that detainees were generally permitted to shower just three times a week, and inspectors noted insects in the showers.
Detainee recreation was also limited to three one-hour sessions per week.
The OIG report ominously concludes that "although FSSF ceased operations in June 2026, the issues raised by the department’s
management response regarding [US Immigration and Customs Enforcement's] level of oversight and responsibility for immigration detention remain consequential."
The publication cites the Baker Correctional Institution—also known as "Deportation Depot"—in Sanderson, Florida, which has yet to undergo OIG inspection, and where detainees and their advocates have reported abuses and inhumane conditions similar to those alleged at Alligator Alcatraz.
Some critics of the new OIG report denounced what they said were critical omissions and falsehoods, including that FSSF complied with use-of-force standards. Clients of attorney Katherine Blankenship and other detainees at the facility said they were beaten—and one man had his wrist fractured—after complaining about not having phone access earlier this year.
The Associated Press reported in April:
When one detainee approached a guard, he was punched in the face. The guards then started beating other detainees in the cell. One of Blankenship’s clients was punched in the right eye, thrown to the floor, and beaten by several guards. He was kicked in the head and his shoulder and arm were injured. A guard put his knee on the detainee’s neck while restraining him, according to the attorney’s declaration, which included a photo made during a video call almost a week later showing the detainee with a bruised eye.
Other alleged abuses and inhumane conditions at Alligator Alcatraz not mentioned in the OIG report include rotten and maggot-infested food, 24-hour lighting, flooding, and denial of religious practice.
Some detainees also claimed they were held in the phone booth-sized cages for far longer than two hours.
“People ended up in the ‘box’ just for asking the guards for anything," one former detainee told Amnesty. "I saw a guy who was put in it for an entire day."
Glad folks are appalled by photos of the "phone booth" cage under an awning, but pls understand: This IG report is likely part of a cover-up. Amnesty Int'l interviewed detainees EIGHT MONTHS AGO who said the cage was half this size (couldn't stand up), had no awning, w feet chained to the bottom.
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— Gillian Brockell (@gillianbrockell.com) September 14, 2026 at 9:20 AM
Responding to the new OIG report, Congressman Adam Smith (D-Wash.) said Monday on social media that "people at Florida's Alligator Alcatraz were subjected to inhumane, unjust punishment, risking their health and safety while in federal detention. No person should be locked into an 18-square-foot cage, period."
Last year, Jayapal and Smith introduced the Dignity for Detained Immigrants Act, which Jayapal's office described as "legislation to enact guardrails and oversight on immigration detention, and to ensure civil and human rights are protected."
Since Trump returned to the White House in January 2025, more than 50 people have died in ICE custody, including detainees who died inside lockups, during transfers, and in hospitals while still under DHS control. The agency also announced earlier this year that it would stop reporting the deaths of people recently released from ICE detention.
Krish O'Mara Vignarajah, President and CEO of the advocacy group Global Refuge, said in a statement responding to the new OIG report that "there is no euphemism that can sanitize caging human beings. Calling a metal box a 'calming area' is an affront to the English language and to human dignity alike."
"The stark reality is that human beings, many of whom came to this country seeking protection, were crammed into spaces unfit to accommodate them, denied adequate medical care, food, and basic hygiene—and in at least one case locked in a cage as punishment," Vignarajah continued. "That is not immigration enforcement. It is cruelty, carried out in our name and on our dime, to the tune of more than a million dollars a day."
"The facility is closed, but the mindset that built it lives on," she added. "We cannot let Alligator Alcatraz become a blueprint. We call on Congress and the Department of Homeland Security to guarantee that no one held in the United States—regardless of where they were born or how they arrived—is subjected to conditions this administration's own watchdog has deemed inhumane."
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'The Fight Has Just Begun': Angie Nixon Delivers Shocking Upset Win in Florida
“I don’t care about corporations’ bottom lines. I care about people."
Aug 19, 2026
In a surprise upset described variously as "stunning" and "a shocker" in headlines, State Rep. Angie Nixon won the Democratic primary for the open US Senate seat in Florida on Tuesday, defeating Lt. Col. Alex Vindman, the former national security official who many presumed would sail to victory with the support of the party establishment and a massive cash advantage.
Nixon, a former union organizer and a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, will now face Sen. Ashley Moody, whom Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis appointed to the seat after former Sen. Marco Rubio became Secretary of State, in the general election.
In her victory speech, Nixon said the win "showed the world what organized people can accomplish," and vowed to continue her surprise run by defeating Moody, the heavy favorite in a state dominated by Republicans over recent years, in the general election.
“I don’t know about you but I was taught to love my neighbors… They call me extreme but these things are not radical. They are not extreme… So Ashley Moody can call us whatever she wants. But in November she will call me Senator.”
— Progressive Angie Nixon, after pulling off a… pic.twitter.com/kXIq15uCMA
— Drop Site (@DropSiteNews) August 19, 2026
Outspent by Vindman by an estimated 13-to-1 advantage—raising just $975,000 overall compared to the more than $16 million he had on hand—Nixon was credited with channeling growing voter frustration with the Democratic Party elites who have failed to deliver for working people.
In a Monday night campaign interview on the eve of the election, Nixon told CNN that too many corporate establishment Democrats are standing in the way of real progress on key issues like healthcare as families struggle with an exploding cost of living.
“I don’t care about corporations’ bottom lines," Nixon said. "I care about people."
Angie Nixon said Democratic leaders Hakeem Jeffries and Chuck Schumer should face scrutiny as too many “corporate-established Democrats” are beholden to companies rather than ordinary people. “I don’t care about corporations’ bottom lines; I care about people,” Nixon said.… pic.twitter.com/K9jfShul7g
— Drop Site (@DropSiteNews) August 19, 2026
Prominent national progressives championed Nixon's win.
"Democratic Socialist State Representative Angie Nixon, outspent more than 16 to 1, pulled off a HUGE upset to win the Democratic nomination for the US Senate in Florida," said Sen. Bernie Sanders (I-Vt.). "Congratulations, Angie!"
"Tonight Floridians sent a strong message that they need real progressive leadership to lower costs and protect our rights," declared Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.). "Congratulations on your primary victory, Angie Nixon; let's keep up the momentum and send her to Washington in November!"
Noting her strong support for Palestinian rights, the advocacy group Jewish Voice for Peace Action heralded the importance of Nixon's willingness to speak out against US complicity in Israeli abuses when too many in the Democratic Party have remained silent.
“The people are rising up against the political establishment that has failed them," said Stefanie Fox, the group's executive director. "The time is now for candidates like Nixon who champion working people and fight relentlessly to defend the rights of all people from Florida to Palestine."
Ken Martin, chair of the Democratic National Committee, also celebrated Nixon's win.
“As an accomplished state representative and union organizer, Angie Nixon has dedicated herself to fighting for working families," said Martin. "AngiFloridians have chosen a proven leader with the experience and vision to lower costs, expand access to healthcare, make childcare and housing more affordable, fight for workers, protect public education, and deliver results for families across the Sunshine State. The DNC is ready to help elect Angie and work together to flip this seat, win the Senate majority, and deliver for all Floridians.”
While the celebrations poured in, Florida remains a deeply red state, and Nixon faces an incredibly tough uphill climb to defeat Moody in November.
In a social media post Tuesday night, Nixon told supporters: "We did it ya'll. Thank you to every person that put their heart into this campaign."
But "get ready," she added, "the fight has just begun."
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While Actively Trying to Deny Millions This Right, Trump Again Votes by Mail
"The hypocrisy is the point," said Rep. Ayanna Pressley.
Aug 18, 2026
President Donald Trump has pushed to strip millions of Americans of the right to vote by mail. But he doesn't seem to think these restrictions should apply to him.
The White House confirmed to The New York Times that the president voted by mail ahead of Florida's Republican primary on Tuesday, marking at least the third time he has done so since becoming president. He also voted by mail in a state legislative special election earlier this year and in the 2020 Republican primary.
Though Trump has repeatedly characterized mail-in voting itself as a form of "cheating" and pushed to abolish it for most Americans under his proposed SAVE America Act, White House spokesperson Olivia Wales said it was a "non-story" that he chose to participate in the practice himself.
"The SAVE America Act has commonsense exceptions for Americans to use mail-in ballots for illness, disability, military, or travel— but universal mail-in voting should not be allowed because it’s highly susceptible to fraud," she said. "As everyone knows, the president is a resident of Palm Beach and participates in Florida elections, but he obviously primarily lives at the White House in Washington, DC."
Florida notably does not distinguish between absentee and other forms of mail-in voting, allowing residents to cast votes without an excuse—so the system Trump used to vote by mail is the same one he wants to make illegal.
Failing to pass his SAVE America Act through Congress, Trump has attempted to restrict mail-in voting via executive order.
An order he signed in March required states to hand over lists of eligible voters to the federal government and said that the US Postal Service could block residents of states from voting by mail if they refused to comply. The order also directed the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) to create state "citizenship lists" to be sent to election officials.
This order has been blocked in federal court, and Trump has pushed for the Supreme Court to allow it to go into effect before the November 3 midterm election. Voting rights advocates have warned that if the order goes into effect, many eligible voters will be wrongly excluded because their names don't appear on DHS's federal lists.
There is scarce evidence that any form of mail-in balloting is susceptible to fraud anywhere near the levels that would be necessary to swing the result of an election.
An analysis by the Brookings Institution last year, which examined data from the right-wing Heritage Foundation's election fraud database, found that for every 10 million mail ballots cast, about four ballots were associated with voting fraud, though the database is not exhaustive.
It's not clear why voting by mail for convenience would be any more "susceptible to fraud" than doing so for illness, disability, military, or travel, as the White House claims.
In fact, the Brookings study found that states with universal no-excuse mail-in voting have the lowest rates of mail-in fraud, and some states, like Washington, have seen reductions in fraud after transitioning to universal mail-in voting.
Advocates for universal mail-in balloting have emphasized that it makes voting easier and more accessible than when it's restricted to election days at physical polling places. They also say restricting it is especially harmful to voters from racial minority groups who face greater barriers to in-person voting and are more likely to have absentee ballot applications rejected.
Rep. Ayanna Pressley (D-Mass.) rejected the idea that the right of other Americans to vote by mail was any less legitimate than Trump's right to do so.
"Trump just voted by mail AGAIN while trying to take away the right for millions of people to do the same," Pressley wrote in a social media post. "The hypocrisy is the point. We won't let Republicans attack the sacred right to vote, including by mail."
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‘Breaking Federal Law. Just Like Daddy Trump’: Republican Randy Fine Caught Rifling Through Voter’s Mailbox
"Randy Fine is a menace to basic human decency," said one critic.
Aug 18, 2026
US Rep. Randy Fine, who has become notorious for his bigoted remarks against Muslims throughout his political career, was caught on camera Sunday rifling through the mailbox of a Florida voter.
A video that went viral on social media Monday shows Fine (R-Fla.) ringing the doorbell of a resident in Florida's 6th Congressional District, where he was canvassing for votes ahead of Tuesday's Florida congressional primary.
After the resident does not answer the door, Fine is seen opening up their mailbox and flipping through its contents for a few seconds.
Randy Fine just got caught committing a felony on camera. Your congressman just tried going through your mailboxes. That is a federal crime. I am calling on Randy Fine’s immediate removal from Congress & for an investigation to be opened. pic.twitter.com/UnyGquiS1S
— DannyKPolitics (@DannyKPolitics) August 18, 2026
Fine's office confirmed to TMZ on Tuesday that the Florida Republican, who was endorsed by President Donald Trump over the weekend, is the man seen in the video.
According to an article published by Legal Overview in May, opening another person's mailbox and touching their mail could run afoul of 18 USC § 1702 and result in felony charges for obstruction of correspondence.
Fine's potentially illegal actions drew ridicule from Rep. Mark Pocan (R-Wisc.), who observed in a Tuesday social media post that MAGA politicians seemingly can't stop committing crimes.
"Watch my 'colleague' Randy Fine break the law by going through someone’s mail," write Pocan. "MAGA movement’s newest hero is breaking federal law. Just like Daddy Trump. Time to throw these bums out in November!"
Former Democratic Florida US House candidate Barbie Harden Hall also mocked Fine.
"Why are you looking through someone’s mailbox while you’re out canvassing?" she asked. "Not only is it wrong, it’s creepy as fuck. Randy Fine is a menace to basic human decency."
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Hegseth, Eric Trump Dismiss Safety Concerns as Navy Reviews Low Flyover at Florida Beach
"The flyovers will continue until morale improves," said the defense secretary.
Jul 16, 2026
A day after Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth shared with the public his fixation on service members' levels of testosterone, the president's son mocked those who were alarmed by the US military's latest apparent display of might directed at Americans, mocking what he called the "low-T mainstream media."
Saying the stunned responses of many who saw a jet fly low over a crowded beach in Pensacola, Florida were simply "manufactured outrage," Eric Trump said the maneuver was "undoubtedly the highlight of these people’s day."
Trump's comments came as officials with the US Navy's elite Blue Angels said they were conducting a "thorough safety review" to determine whether the flyover violated the squadron's and the Federal Aviation Administration's (FAA) strict standards.
Online videos showed people gathered on the beach Wednesday morning for a "Breakfast with the Blues" flight demonstration event.
A jet flew close to the crowd, directly over the heads of the onlookers, overturning some chairs and umbrellas. A child was heard crying in one video posted by a local news outlet.
Dramatic video shows the U.S. Navy Blue Angels making a low-altitude flyover above Pensacola Beach, Florida, on Wednesday. Navy officials confirmed in a statement that Blue Angels leadership is "reviewing the circumstances surrounding the maneuver and conducting a thorough safety… pic.twitter.com/ZUa1ryk4X8
— ABC News (@ABC) July 15, 2026
In the "low-altitude pass," Blue Angels officials said, the aircraft "flew lower than standard profiles, resulting in a disturbance on the beach that affected civilian chairs and umbrellas."
"The safety of our hometown community, spectators, and our pilots is our highest priority," the statement continued. "Team leadership is reviewing the circumstances surrounding the maneuver and conducting a thorough safety review to ensure all operations adhere to strict Navy and FAA safety standards."
Hegseth struck a decidedly different tone than the flight demonstration squadron, which is known for its precision and strict safety protocols.
"The flyovers will continue until morale improves," said the defense secretary in a reference to a well-known, sardonic slogan.
Writer JP Hill called Hegseth's response to the flyover "fucking insane" and expressed hope that a result of the Trump administration would be "a realization that this brand of masculinity that's just an emotionally frozen 12-year-old in an adult body is stupid as shit."
Meanwhile, the White House posted on X an illustration that appeared to equate approval of the stunt with patriotism and freedom, writing, "It's okay to love America" above the image.
The maneuver in Florida came months after a live-fire weapons demonstration by the US Marines over Interstate 5 in California, during which a malfunction caused an artillery shell to explode prematurely and send shrapnel over the highway where traffic was flowing.
Writer and podcaster Noah Kulwin wrote that the two recent maneuvers combined "leads me to believe: American military will accidentally cause a civilian mass casualty incident in the continental US before Trump’s term is out."
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