Republicans are poised to drop around 15 seats and their supermajority hold in the Florida House, but are poised to recapture a district that includes President Donald Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate.
And the GOP supermajority hold in the Senate is on thin ice as Democrat John Lowndes, the mayor of Maitland, was ahead of Sen. Jason Brodeur, a Sanford Republican.
Florida House Democratic Leader-designate Christine Hunschofsky said breaking the supermajority means Republicans can no longer act alone on certain major decisions, including overriding a governor’s veto or bypassing legislative rules, which require a two-thirds vote.
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“After years of Republican supermajority control, Floridians across the state stepped up to demand a different direction,” Hunschofsky said.
The Washington, D.C.-based Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee called it a “stunning victory.”
“Florida Republicans have abused their power for years to push an unpopular and dangerous agenda, including attacking voting rights and rigging their congressional maps,” DLCC President Heather Williams said in a released statement. “Now that we have broken the supermajority in the House, Democrats are better positioned to fight back against rampant extremism and protect against attacks on our democracy.”
Needing 80 seats for a supermajority, the House entered Tuesday holding 82 seats, while Democrats held 34.
There were also four vacant seats that Republicans previously held.
Among incumbent House members set for defeat on Tuesday were: Chad Johnson of Chiefland, Monique Miller of Palm Bay, Erika Booth of St. Cloud, Rachel Plakon of Lake Mary, Danny Alvarez of Hillsborough County, Meg Weinberger of Palm Beach Gardens, Hillary Cassel of Dania Beach, Fabian Basabe of Miami Beach, Doug Bankson of Apopka, and Hilary Holley of Polk City.
Miller’s potential defeat to Democrat Daniel McDow appeared to be within the margin for a recount.
Cassel changed her party affiliation from Democratic to Republican after being reelected in 2024.
Basabe this past summer lost a civil trial alleging he sexually harassed two former male staffers. He has denied all wrongdoing and is appealing the verdict.
Weinberger was among those discussed as a potential running mate for Governor-elect Byron Donalds.
Meanwhile, Republican Jon Maples, who was defeated in a special election in the spring to Rep. Emily Gregory of Jupiter, was poised to win the District 87 seat that runs along Palm Beach County’s east coast. Gregory’s victory drew national attention, and the GOP was eager to take it back.
In the Senate, President-designate Jim Boyd, R-Bradenton, thanked voters as he cruised to victory.
“There’s no question that families in our region — and across the state and nation — are struggling with affordability,” Boyd said in a statement. “It’s no longer enough to focus on the future; we also have to focus on the present. In this new term, that is my commitment to you.”
Needing 27 seats for a supermajority, the Senate entered Tuesday at 26 Republicans, 12 Democrats, 1 independent, and 1 vacancy.
The seat held by former Sen. Bryan Avila remains open, and no special election has been called. Avila resigned to run as Donalds’ lieutenant governor.
Sen. Alexis Calatayud, R-Miami, appeared set to win another term, with the unofficial results early Tuesday night putting her just outside the 0.5 percent margin of victory triggering an automatic recount.
Democrats were set to retain District 14 in Hillsborough County, which Sen. Brian Nathan picked up in a March special election.
Republicans reran former state Rep. Josie Tomkow, who was part of House leadership prior to her defeat in the special election, for the seat once held by Lt. Gov. Jay Collins.