On Aug. 20, registered Democratic and Republican voters in Florida will get their final chance to elect their respective party’s candidates.
In a tumultuous election year, local, state and federal hopefuls are lined up in party primaries that will decide candidates for the November 5 general election.
There are also nonpartisan races for judge and county offices as well as referendums that could choose a new mayor, election supervisor and more.
Although there are many different choices for each position on the ballot, three key races will catch the eye of multiple voters as they make their way to the polls.
United States Senate
U.S Sen. Rick Scott is campaigning for a second term in office. In the Republican primary, the incumbent is challenged by Keith Gross, a former assistant state attorney for state circuit court near Orlando, and John Columbus, an actor.
Meanwhile, the frontrunner for the Democratic primary is Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, a former U.S. representative from Miami and a rare Latina running for the Senate. Her opponents are Navy veteran and CEO Stanley Campbell, consultant and Purple Heart recipient Rod Joseph, and former state representative and 2022 Senate candidate Brian Rush.
Mucarsel-Powell has an uphill battle to climb if she wins her primary; Florida has turned increasingly red over the years, which means a chance against Sen. Rick Scott for a Senate seat is slim. Scott has geared his campaign towards Latin Americans with advertisements that tried to label Mucarsel-Powell, who was the first Ecuadorian American and first South American-born immigrant to serve as a member of the U.S. Congress, a “socialist.”
Mucarsel-Powell has made abortion one of the main points in her campaign. It is an issue that Democrats hope will bring voters to the polls. But some are skeptical of its impact, including FIU political science professor and pollster Eduardo Gamarra.
“That will give Mucarsel-Powell a boost,” he told NBC News. “But it’s not going to give her the boost that Democrats are really needing in a state which is so decisively Republican.”
For more information on the U.S. Senate race, click here.
Miami-Dade Mayor
Miami-Dade Mayor Daniella Levine Cava has decided to run for a second term. However, she faces six opponents – one Libertarian, one Independent and four Republicans – in a nonpartisan race.
The four Republicans are Manny Cid, Shlomo Danzinger, Carlos Garin and Alex Otaola. Cid is the mayor of Miami Lakes. Danzinger is the former mayor of Surfside who was in office during the collapse of the Champlain Towers South building in 2021. Garin is an actor and the 2022 candidate for Florida’s 28th congressional district, which includes South Miami-Dade County and the Keys. Otaola is a Cuban-American actor and Youtube influencer.
Miguel Quintero is a Democrat-turned-Libertarian who is a community activist and patron of the performing arts, while Eddy Rojas is an Independent, a local business owner and civic leader.
One candidate needs more than 50% of the vote to win. If no one meets the threshold, the top two will face each other in a run-off election in November.
For more information on the mayoral race in Miami-Dade, click here.
Miami-Dade County Sheriff
Miami-Dade voters will be electing a new sheriff for the first time in half a century after a 2018 amendment reinstated the position. Since there is no incumbent, a total of 15 candidates – which include 11 Republicans and four Democrats – have a chance to become the next sheriff.
While the large pool has made it difficult for voters to narrow down their favorites, some names have already stood out from the rest.
Republican Rosanna Cordero-Stutz, the assistant director of investigative services for Miami-Dade police, is one of two women who are vying to become sheriff and was endorsed by former President Donald Trump earlier this year. Democrat James Reyes is the current chief of Miami-Dade County Public Safety and has been endorsed by Mayor Daniella Levine Cava.
A third hopeful who has made news is Republican Joe Martinez, a suspended Miami-Dade commissioner who was arrested in 2022 for unlawful compensation charges. Martinez announced his candidacy for sheriff after he attended a court hearing in June. He says the charges are political.
For more information on the sheriff’s race in Miami-Dade, click here.
Other races in the primaries include state representatives, circuit court judges and a variety of county positions such as commissioners, school board and Republican Executive Committee.
The ballot also includes a county straw ballot question about expanding transit in Miami-Dade County and a county referendum regarding the construction of a fire station in Miami Beach’s Flamingo Park.
For more information on the Miami-Dade County positions up for election, access the sample ballot here.
