A democratic socialist's landslide upset in a red state primary has rattled the party establishment and handed Republicans a fresh warning.
Florida Democratic Senate primary winner Angie Nixon, a former union organizer who has represented Jacksonville in the Florida House since 2020, defeated retired Army intelligence officer Alex Vindman on Tuesday despite being outspent by more than 10 to one, a Wednesday article by The Guardian reported.
She raised $975,000 to Vindman's $16.3 million but pulled in more than 750,000 votes to his 550,000.
Conservative commentator Noah Rothman, writing in National Review, branded Nixon "communist-curious" and cast the result as proof of a broader threat.
"Even if the race for Senate in Florida is now a foregone conclusion, this race will still feature prominently in the national conversation," Rothman wrote. "Why? Because it demonstrates that Republicans are right when they warn that the socialist phenomenon is coming to a town near you."
Nixon, who only recently joined the Democratic Socialists of America and was not endorsed by the group, brushed off the labels in her victory speech.
"They call us extreme, they call us radical," she said, per The Guardian. "But I think people see through that. I won't let them define me."
She closed with a shot at her November opponent, Sen. Ashley Moody (R-FL), saying, "Ashley Moody can call me whatever she wants, but in November she'll be calling me senator."
Aubrey Jewett, a political science professor at the University of Central Florida, said the outcome exposed a shift in the party's base with "a strong majority of progressive social Democrats in Florida." However, she questioned whether the wider electorate would follow. Organizer Hayley Margolis said Nixon's grassroots campaign "sent shock waves through the Democratic establishment."
The win scrambled establishment plans, The Guardian noted. Within hours, Sabato's Crystal Ball moved the race from "likely Republican" to "safe Republican," according to The Guardian.
Vindman pledged to back his former rival and vowed to stand "by her side in the fight against Ashley Moody."