Miami-Dade Democrats Turned Out 25% More Than Republicans. Now Let's Win in November.

Democrats showed up by mail, at early voting locations, and on Election Day to make their voice heard. Of the 244,593 total ballots cast (19% turnout), 114,661 came from registered Democrats, well ahead of 92,066 from Republicans, a lead of nearly 22,600 votes. David Jolly and Angie Nixon move on to November.

Florida's August 18 primary set the field for the November 3, 2026 General Election. Miami-Dade Democrats turned out and chose their nominees for governor, U.S. Senate, Congress, the state legislature, and a slate of local offices that shape daily life in our county. Now the real work begins: making sure every Democrat in Miami-Dade is registered, has a plan to vote, and shows up between now and November 3.

Statewide: The Top of the Ticket

Governor: Democrat David Jolly is campaigning on lowering housing and insurance costs, boosting public education funding, and reversing years of Republican control in Tallahassee. Jolly won the Democratic nomination for governor and will face Republican U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds in November. Running with him for Lieutenant Governor is former U.S. Rep. Gwen Graham, daughter of the late Gov. and Sen. Bob Graham. With Ron DeSantis term-limited, this is Democrats' first real shot in years at ending 28 years of unbroken Republican control of the Governor's Mansion.

U.S. Senate (Special Election): State Rep. Angie Nixon of Jacksonville is running on lowering costs for working families, expanding access to healthcare and child care, and taking on corporate price-gouging. Nixon won the Democratic nomination and will face appointed Republican incumbent Sen. Ashley Moody in November for the final two years of Marco Rubio's term.

Attorney General: Former state Rep. José Javier Rodríguez advanced unopposed as the Democratic nominee and will face Republican James Uthmeier in November.

Chief Financial Officer: Former state Sen. Annette Taddeo of Miami-Dade won a decisive Democratic primary victory and will face Republican incumbent Blaise Ingoglia in November.

Commissioner of Agriculture: Miami trial attorney Joey Mendoza Atkins won the Democratic nomination and will face Republican incumbent Wilton Simpson in November.

Congress: South Florida's Battleground Districts

Redistricting reshaped several South Florida seats this cycle, and Miami-Dade Democrats have real opportunities up and down the map:

District 24 (open seat, northern Miami-Dade/southern Broward): Miami-Dade County Commissioner Oliver Gilbert III won a crowded seven-candidate field to become the Democratic nominee, succeeding retiring Rep. Frederica Wilson. He faces Republican T.E. Brown.
District 25 (newly redrawn, coastal Miami-Dade/Broward/Palm Beach): U.S. Rep. Jared Moskowitz won renomination and faces Republican Scott Singer.
District 26: Democrat Nicole Locklin advances unopposed to face longtime Republican incumbent Mario Diaz-Balart.
District 27 (Miami-Dade based, covering Miami, Coral Gables, Kendall, Key Biscayne, and Pinecrest): Former CBS News Miami anchor Eliott Rodriguez won the Democratic nomination and will try to flip the seat held by Republican Maria Elvira Salazar.
District 28 (Monroe County and southwest Miami-Dade, including Homestead and Cutler Bay): Retired Navy Commander Phil Ehr advances unopposed to again challenge Republican incumbent Carlos Gimenez, with independent Eddy Rojas also on the ballot.

Florida Legislature: Miami-Dade Seats to Watch

State Senate

District 34 (Miami Gardens to Miami Beach): State Rep. Ashley Gantt won the Democratic nomination and faces Republican Elizabeth Jeanty in November.
District 36 (Miami Beach, parts of Miami, Coral Gables, and Sweetwater): Republican incumbent Ileana Garcia drew a late Democratic challenger in George Lávin, a legal expert and community advocate, running on affordability, accountability, and public safety.
District 38 (Cutler Bay, Palmetto Bay, Pinecrest, South Miami, parts of Homestead and Coral Gables): This is one of the top targets on Florida Democrats' map. Entrepreneur Richard Lamondin won the Democratic nomination to challenge Republican incumbent Alexis Calatayud, who won the seat by just 8 points in 2022.
District 40 (most of Miami-Dade and all of Monroe County): Jose Antonio Stoute is the Democratic nominee challenging Republican incumbent Ana Maria Rodriguez.

(State Senate Districts 37 and 39, also touching Miami-Dade, are not on the ballot until 2028.)

State House

District 104 (Miami Gardens area): Democratic incumbent Felicia Simone Robinson is running for re-election.
District 106 (Miami Beach to Aventura, currently held by Republican Fabian Basabe): Lucía Báez-Geller won the Democratic nomination and heads to the general election.
District 107 (North Miami-Dade): Democratic incumbent Wallace Aristide is running for re-election.
District 108 (open seat, succeeding term-limited Rep. Dotie Joseph): Former Rep. Daphne D. Campbell won the Democratic nomination over a three-way field and faces Republican Wancito Francius in November.
District 109 (Miami Gardens, Opa-locka, Liberty City): James Bush III won a four-way Democratic primary and heads straight to the seat. No Republican qualified to run, so the primary decided the race.
District 113 (open seat, Little Havana to Key Biscayne): Gloria Romero Roses won the Democratic nomination and faces Republican Bruno Barreiro in November.
District 115 (Dadeland area): Marcos Reyes is the Democratic nominee challenging Republican incumbent Omar Blanco.
District 116 (Westchester area): Nicolas Ramos is the Democratic nominee challenging Republican incumbent Daniel Perez, the outgoing Florida House Speaker.
District 117 (Homestead, Florida City): Democratic incumbent Kevin Chambliss faces a general election challenge from Republican Miguel Granda.
District 118 (West Kendall, currently held by Republican incumbent Mike Redondo): Armando "AC" Castillo is the Democratic nominee challenging Redondo.
District 119 (The Hammocks area): Reysy Sordo is the Democratic nominee challenging Republican incumbent Juan Carlos Porras.

Republican incumbents in Districts 110 (Tom Fabricio), 111 (David Borrero), 112 (Alex Rizo), 114 (Demi Busatta Cabrera), and 120 (Jim Mooney) drew no Democratic challenger this cycle and are not contested in November. Check your sample ballot at votemiamidade.gov to see exactly which legislative races appear on your ballot.

Miami-Dade County: Local Races That Hit Close to Home

Local government touches transit, housing, public safety, and county budgets more directly than almost anything else on the ballot. Here's where things stand after August 18:

County Commission

District 2: Incumbent Marleine Bastien won re-election outright with 78% of the vote.
District 8: Incumbent Danielle Cohen Higgins won re-election outright with 55% of the vote.
District 5, HEADED TO A NOVEMBER RUNOFF: No candidate topped 50%, so this race continues to Election Day. Appointed incumbent Vicki Lopez will face Democratic-endorsed challenger Rob Piper a retired Marine Corps veteran, in the Nov. 3 runoff. This is one of the most consequential local races on the ballot: District 5 covers Brickell, Downtown Miami, Little Havana, and parts of Miami Beach.

Miami-Dade School Board

District 8: Incumbent Monica Colucci won re-election outright with roughly 92% of the vote over a write-in challenger.
District 1, HEADED TO A NOVEMBER RUNOFF: In an eight-candidate field to succeed former board member Steve Gallon III, Katrina Wilson and Linda Cothiere advance to the Nov. 3 runoff.

Key Dates Between Now and Election Day

Mark your calendar — and share these dates with every Democrat you know in Miami-Dade:

Date	What Happens
Now	Confirm your registration and party info at votemiamidade.gov
October 5, 2026	Voter registration deadline for the General Election
October 19 to November 1, 2026	Early voting at Miami-Dade locations countywide (statewide mandatory window is Oct. 24 to 31; Miami-Dade traditionally offers additional early days)
October 22, 2026, 5:00 p.m.	Deadline to request a vote-by-mail ballot
November 3, 2026	Election Day. Polls open 7:00 a.m. – 7:00 p.m. Vote-by-mail ballots must be received (not just postmarked) by 7:00 p.m. to count.

A few reminders for voters:

If you requested vote-by-mail for a past election, your request may have expired. Vote-by-mail requests are only valid through the next General Election.
On Election Day, you must vote at your assigned precinct. During early voting, any of the county's early voting sites will work.
Every early voting site also has an official ballot drop box if you'd rather return your mail ballot in person instead of trusting it to the post office.

Bottom Line

Miami-Dade Democrats have real opportunities this November — from the Governor's Mansion and a U.S. Senate seat down to a county commission runoff that will shape housing and development policy in the heart of Miami. Two of our closest local races, the District 5 County Commission seat and the District 1 School Board seat, are headed to overtime and will be decided by whoever shows up on November 3.

Check your registration, make your plan to vote, and help a neighbor do the same. Every one of these races will be won on turnout.

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