Socialist Insurgency Hits Florida Primaries as Democrats Battle Left Flank

Florida voters head to the polls Tuesday in the final major primary test of the 2026 midterm season, and the biggest fight on the Democratic side is not against Republicans -- it is between establishment liberals and a rising socialist insurgency. Three democratic socialist candidates are challenging mainstream Democrats in House and Senate primaries in President Donald Trump's home state, betting that a hard-left message can win over primary voters.

The races amount to a stress test for the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), which has scored upsets across the country this year but took a hit last week in Wisconsin. Polls open at 7 a.m. and close at 7 p.m. Eastern, with results expected Tuesday night.

Three Insurgents Take Aim at the Democratic Establishment

The highest-profile challenge is in the 25th Congressional District, where union organizer Oliver Larkin, a DSA member and veteran of Bernie Sanders' 2016 presidential campaign, is trying to unseat two-term Rep. Jared Moskowitz. The district was redrawn by Florida's Republican legislature, and Moskowitz -- a self-described "DeSantis Democrat" who once ran the state's Division of Emergency Management -- now finds himself fighting for his political life on the left.

Larkin's platform includes Medicare for All, a $25 federal minimum wage and abolishing U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE). He also supports abolishing the Senate and has called for arresting Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. His campaign says it has knocked on more than 30,000 doors, and he carries endorsements from the DSA and far-left streamer Hasan Piker. Polls still show Moskowitz ahead by double digits.

In the 20th District, progressive activist Elijah Manley, who identifies as a democratic socialist, is challenging former Democratic National Committee chairwoman Debbie Wasserman Schultz. Manley is not a DSA member but is running on the same insurgent playbook.

The most visible race is the Senate primary, where Florida state Rep. Angie Nixon, a newly minted DSA member, is taking on retired Army Lt. Col. Alex Vindman, who testified during Trump's first impeachment. Nixon campaigned Friday in Fort Lauderdale alongside Larkin, Manley and Rep. Rashida Tlaib of Michigan. Vindman remains the front-runner, and the winner will face Republican Sen. Ashley Moody in November.

A Movement Riding High -- and Licking Wounds

The DSA enters Tuesday's contests with real momentum. Left-wing candidates won Democratic Senate primaries this month in Michigan and Minnesota, and socialist-backed candidates have claimed victories in New York, Philadelphia and Colorado. But the movement stumbled last week when DSA member Francesca Hong lost Wisconsin's Democratic gubernatorial primary, a defeat that took some of the wind out of the insurgency's sails.

Notably, the party's most famous socialists are staying out of the Florida fight. Neither Sen. Bernie Sanders nor Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez has weighed in on the races, a sign that national progressives see Florida as hostile territory.

The stakes go beyond individual seats. A socialist win Tuesday would hand the left another argument that its agenda -- abolishing ICE, Medicare for All, rent control -- is the path to Democratic relevance. A sweep for the establishment would give moderates ammunition to steer the party back toward the center.

Trump-Backed Donalds Cruising on the Republican Side

On the GOP side, Rep. Byron Donalds is the heavy favorite to win the Republican nomination for governor. Donalds has President Trump's endorsement, has raised more than $100 million, and polls show Republican primary voters overwhelmingly behind him heading into Tuesday. His nearest rivals in the crowded field include former state House Speaker Paul Renner and state Sen. Jay Collins.

The Republican winner will face the Democratic nominee in November, with former Republican congressman David Jolly leading the Democratic field. The GOP also expects to defend a state Trump carried by comfortable margins in 2024, and Florida's newly drawn congressional map is projected to give Republicans an edge in several House districts in November -- one reason the Democratic establishment is nervous about losing even a single incumbent seat to the left.

What to Watch Tuesday Night

Results will begin rolling in after polls close at 7 p.m. Eastern. The three Democratic races are the ones to watch: a socialist win in any of them would reshape the narrative around the party's direction heading into the November midterms.

Also on the ballot Tuesday, former Rep. Mary Peltola is running in Alaska's nonpartisan primary in an attempt to unseat Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan. The Alaska contest advances candidates to November regardless of party.

For Florida's Democrats, Tuesday comes down to one question: does the party listen to its socialist wing or its moderate core? For the rest of the country, it is a preview of the battles that will define the midterms.