Florida Republicans Face Off Against Well-funded Democrats In Us House Special Elections

Tuesday's special elections for two Florida congressional seats in heavily pro-Trump districts have become an unexpected source of concern for national Republicans as Democrats have poured millions in fundraising into the races.

Both seats opened when President Donald Trump chose their representatives for jobs in his second administration. Matt Gaetz was briefly nominated to be Trump's attorney general before withdrawing, while Mike Waltz became national security adviser.

Florida state Sen. Randy Fine, running for Waltz's seat, and state Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis, running to replace Gaetz, are widely expected to hold the seats in their reliably conservative districts, which would give Republicans a 220 to 213 advantage over Democrats in the U.S. House. But both have been outraised by their Democratic counterparts, and Republicans in Florida and Washington have begun trying to distance themselves from any potential underperformance.

Fine has attached himself closely to Trump. He texted The Associated Press on Monday a post on the social platform X from Trump, who encouraged voters to turn out for Fine on Election Day and said Fine was an "incredible fighter."

Special elections are often low-turnout events that can lead to surprising results. But anything other than blowout victories in either district would be noteworthy.