Angie Nixon notches an upset victory in Florida’s Democratic Senate primary
Florida Democrat Angie Nixon, a progressive who recently joined the Democratic Socialists of America, won Democrats’ nomination for a U.S. Senate seat in a stunning upset that gave progressives a win in a highly unlikely state.
Nixon, a Florida state representative and community organizer, defeated retired Lt. Col. Alex Vindman to face Republican Ashley Moody, who was appointed to fill the seat vacated by Secretary of State Marco Rubio in January 2025.
Nixon’s win in Florida is stunning given the state’s large Latino population, which for years has punished Democrats who become linked to the “socialist” label. In the past decade, Republicans have grown their power in the state by appealing to the population’s fears of socialism, pointing to authoritarian regimes in Cuba, Venezuela and elsewhere.
Nixon ran with the backing of key progressive figures, including Democratic Reps. Maxwell Frost of Florida, Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan and Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts. Like other progressives running in primaries around the country, Nixon vowed to aggressively challenge the status quo along with “billionaires and corporations,” and described her campaign as “actually not just really progressive, it’s just centering people, hardworking people.” In a state that has swung decidedly toward Republicans in the Trump era, Nixon animated Florida Democrats hopeful about stopping the bleed.
Nixon is only the second Black woman to win the Democratic nomination for a U.S. Senate seat in the Sunshine State. If she wins the general election, she would also become the first Black lawmaker and second woman ever elected to represent the state in the U.S. Senate.
Nixon is widely seen as an insurgent figure known for visible displays of dissent. She was arrested in a May sit-in in the office of Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis as she protested Florida’s redrawn congressional maps. Dressed in a pink jumpsuit and carrying a pink megaphone, Nixon also protested the maps as illegal on the floor of the Florida House.
