A political analyst on Tuesday revealed that despite the challenge, the conditions could be right to flip red-state Florida blue.
As Florida voters cast their ballots on primary election day, Newsweek national political correspondent Alex J. Rouhandeh took a deeper dive into the competitive race among Democrats and how President Donald Trump's low approval rating could "create the kind of climate" ripe for a swing.
"Florida has become the epicenter of MAGA, but that hasn’t stopped Never Trump candidates Alex Vindman and David Jolly from making waves in the state," Rouhandeh wrote on X.
Jolly, a former GOP representative, was vying to stay on top of the ticket in the Democratic primary for governor. Alex Vindman, retired Army lieutenant colonel and the whistleblower who helped push Trump's first impeachment forward, is also competing for a U.S. Senate seat in the state. Both candidates were expected to be the front-runners, according to prediction market Kalshi. Kalshi gave the Democratic candidates more than 90 percent odds of leading the Democratic primary race.
Rouhandeh pointed to a comment from Mike Madrid, “The Latino Century” author and Latino GOP political consultant.
"If lightning is going to be caught in a bottle, it requires an environment precisely like this one," Madrid told Rouhandeh.
"Flipping Florida remains a longshot for Democrats, but the party there has done about all it can to make that longshot possible," Rouhandeh reported.
Florida has become the epicenter of MAGA, but that hasn’t stopped Never Trump candidates Alex Vindman and David Jolly from making waves in the state
“If lightning is going to be caught in a bottle, it requires an environment precisely like this one,” @madrid_mike told me.… pic.twitter.com/v6QdqIWILQ
— Alex J. Rouhandeh (@AlexRouhandeh) August 18, 2026