Trump ally coasts in special House primary to fill vacant Florida seat
Trump-endorsed state Sen. Randy Fine easily won a special House primary Tuesday in northwest Florida, setting him up to fill a vacant, deep-red seat as voters picked nominees in two congressional districts in the state.
The Associated Press projected the primary for Fine shortly after polls closed in the district at 7 p.m. Eastern, with Fine taking more than 80% of the GOP primary vote with over half of the ballots counted.
The state legislator notched endorsements not only from President Donald Trump but from House Republican leaders, too, as he sought to succeed former Rep. Mike Waltz. Waltz resigned from the House earlier this month to become Trump’s national security adviser.
Waltz carried the seat by 33 points in 2024. But House Republicans will still have the April 1 special election to replace him circled on their calendars, as adding additional members will give them a bit more breathing room in a tightly divided chamber. After Waltz and former Rep. Matt Gaetz’s resignations, the GOP has a 218-215 edge in the House — meaning only two defections could sink a bill with every member voting.
Trump has also endorsed state Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis in another special House primary Tuesday to replace Gaetz in the Florida Panhandle. Polls there close at 8 p.m. Eastern.
That seat is also very Republican: Gaetz won the district by 30-plus points in each of the past three elections. He resigned from the House last year after Trump picked him to be attorney general, but he dropped out of the running amid allegations of sexual misconduct and drug use.
Later, the House Ethics Committee released a report stating it had “determined there is substantial evidence that Representative Gaetz violated House Rules and other standards of conduct prohibiting prostitution, statutory rape, illicit drug use, impermissible gifts, special favors or privileges, and obstruction of Congress.” Gaetz denied the allegations
