Florida House seats hold steady after redistricting
Democrats retained four redrawn districts while Republicans secured narrow wins, keeping the state delegation at 20 Republicans and 8 Democrats.
By David Marshall ·
U.S. House races in Florida concluded on Tuesday with the state's congressional delegation maintaining its current partisan balance. The final tally, based on late returns, indicates the chamber will remain split with 20 Republican members and 8 Democratic members. This outcome follows a period of intense legal and political maneuvering over the state's new electoral maps.
President Donald Trump and Governor Ron DeSantis pushed for new congressional boundaries that altered 20 of Florida's 28 districts. The state legislature approved these maps in April. At the time of passage, analysts projected that four districts currently held by Democrats would likely switch to the Republican column. The new lines shifted geographic centers and voter demographics in several key areas.
Democratic incumbents and challengers managed to retain those four seats despite the structural advantages given to the GOP. In Congressional District 25, incumbent Jared Moskowitz defeated Boca Raton Mayor Scott Singer. In Congressional District 14, Kathy Castor held her seat against Mike Beltran, a former Republican state representative. Castor's district saw a major geographic shift, losing part of Democratic-leaning Pinellas County to gain more Republican-leaning territory in Hillsborough County.
The new version of District 14 voted for Trump by 11 points in the 2024 election, a stark change from the old district's lean toward Democrats. Suzan DelBene, chair of the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, released a statement praising Castor's victory. She stated that Tampa voters supported Castor because they know who has their backs, adding that the win reflected her deep roots and independent leadership.
Pia Dandiya, a first-time candidate, won Congressional District 22 against businessman Casey Askar. This district covers a wide swath of the state, stretching from Collier County on the Gulf coast to Palm Beach and Broward counties on the Atlantic coast. Previously, the district was centered in urban and coastal parts of Palm Beach County and was held by Lois Frankel, who moved to District 23 following the redistricting.
Darren Soto retained his seat in Congressional District 9 in a tight contest against Republican Dan Green. Late returns showed Soto leading with 50.26 percent of the vote to Green's 49.74 percent. This margin places the result just outside the 0.5 percent threshold required to trigger a recount under state law. The narrow margin suggests that voter sentiment regarding high gas and grocery prices played a role in the outcome.
Republicans secured narrow victories in several districts that were considered competitive or safe for their party. In Congressional District 7, which includes all of Seminole County and part of Volusia County, Republican Ryan Elijah led Democrat Bale Dalton by a margin of 49.8 percent to 49.2 percent. Anna Paulina Luna held onto her seat in Congressional District 13, leading Democrat Leela Gray with 49.5 percent of the vote to Gray's 48.7 percent.
Aaron Bean avoided an upset in Congressional District 4, which covers Nassau, Clay, and Duval counties in northern Florida. Bean won with 50 percent of the vote against Democrat LaShonda Holloway, who received 48.3 percent. In Miami-Dade County, Maria Elvira Salazar held a lead of 50.27 percent over Eliott Rodriguez in District 27. Mario Diaz-Balart maintained a lead of 49.9 percent over Nicole Locklin in District 26, with both margins sufficient to avoid recounts.
