Democrats on Monday officially claimed a second upset in Florida’s recent special elections when The Associated Press declared an electrical workers union leader to be the winner of a tight state senate contest in reliably Republican West Tampa.
Brian Nathan, a Navy veteran and member of a new cadre of working class Democrats, will join Emily Gregory, a small-business owner with a public-health background, as upstart Democrats in Tallahassee. Ms. Gregory on Tuesday won a state house district in Palm Beach that includes President Trump’s Mar-a-Lago seaside mansion.
The upsets supplied the latest electoral boost to a party that suffered setbacks in 2024 in Washington, D.C., and in state capitols across the country but is staging a comeback.
Mr. Nathan, 45, is one of many blue-collar Democrats and anti-Republican independents vying for U.S. House and Senate seats, as well as state legislative posts. Those include Bob Brooks, a retired firefighter, and Brian Poindexter, a union ironworker, who are running for House seats in Pennsylvania; Graham Platner, an oysterman, and Dan Osborn, an industrial electrician, running for the Senate in Maine and Nebraska; and Sam Forstag, a smokejumper and union leader, who is vying for the Democratic nomination for a House seat in Montana.
Since the 2024 election, Democrats have flipped 30 seats previously held by Republicans — including ones in Arkansas, New Hampshire and Texas this year. Republicans have not captured any Democratic seats.
“Democrats have the wind at our backs and we will continue contesting seats up and down the ballot across Florida and the country,” Ken Martin, chair of the Democratic National Committee, said in a statement. “No Republican-held seat is safe.”
Republicans have downplayed the meaning of special elections and off-year races, when turnout is typically low. A Florida Democrat won a State House special election in January 2024, only to lose a rematch in the general election.
“You look at those and see, are there things we can learn and improve upon when the big election comes?” Representative Steve Scalise of Louisiana, the House majority leader, told reporters Wednesday. “And, obviously, November is the election that we are focused on.”
Florida has tilted Republican since its days as a perennial battleground, but Democrats are showing signs of life. In December, Miami overwhelmingly elected its first Democratic mayor in 30 years. And in a race that attracted outsized money and attention, Boca Raton in March narrowly elected its first Democratic mayor in 45 years after what one pro-Trump website called “a textbook case of conservative self-sabotage.”
In West Tampa, Mr. Nathan, a political novice, overcame a sizable financial disadvantage to beat former State Representative Josie Tomkow, in a contest for a State Senate seat vacated when the incumbent, Jay Collins, was appointed lieutenant governor.
Mr. Nathan has vowed to work on pocketbook issues, and to resist recent legislation making it harder for unions to organize. He also said “too many legislators are distracted by divisive culture wars.”
Republicans did retain Ms. Tomkow’s former seat, a rural district between Tampa and Orlando.
In Palm Beach, Ms. Gregory, another first-time candidate, claimed a seat previously occupied by former State Representative Mike Caruso, who resigned in August after being appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis as county clerk. Centering her campaign on affordability, Ms. Gregory, 40, focused less on Mr. Trump than on housing, health care and public education.
“I will work as hard for every single one of the 180,000 constituents in District 87, and not elevate anyone over the rest,” she told reporters Wednesday.
Ms. Gregory won by 2.4 percentage points over Jon Maples, a financial planner, in a district that had given Mr. Trump a cushion of 11 percentage points in 2024. Mr. Trump endorsed Mr. Maples and hosted him at Mar-a-Lago.
The Democrats’ victories will not alter the power dynamics in Tallahassee, where Republicans hold supermajorities. Still, the newest legislators will be on hand for budget negotiations, as well as a special session to redraw Florida’s U.S. House map in time for the 2026 midterms.
Ms. Gregory and Mr. Nathan are expected to run again in November for full two-year terms. Rematches are possible.
David W. Chen is a Times reporter focused on state legislatures, state level policymaking and the political forces behind them.
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