Randy Fine and Jimmy Patronis are key candidates for the GOP to strengthen its slim majority in the House.
On Tuesday, April 1, two critical special elections will be held in Florida. GOP state senator Randy Fine is running to succeed former Rep. Mike Waltz, who was named National Security Advisor, and Florida chief financial officer and GOP candidate Jimmy Patronis is running to succeed former Rep. Matt Gaetz.
The races are critical because the GOP currently holds a narrow 218-213 advantage in the House, with four vacancies. Two other races will be held for vacant Democratic seats in Texas and Arizona, expected to be won by Democrats.
Fine is facing off against Democratic opponent Joshua Weil; Patronis is facing Democrat Gay Valimont. Fine’s district has roughly twice as many registered Republicans as Democrats, the Florida Division of Elections website notes. But Weil has raised nearly $10 million, while Fine has only raised $561,000.
“He needs to do better. But we’re going to win that seat,” National Republican Congressional Committee Chairman Rep. Richard Hudson (R-NC) stated. “I would have preferred if our candidate had raised money at a faster rate and gotten on TV quicker. But he’s doing what he needs to do.”
Winning the two Florida seats is clearly vital for the GOP; NY Rep. Elise Stefanik’s nomination for UN Ambassador was pulled on Thursday out of concern that a vacancy in her district would reduce the GOP majority by another vote. Trump requested that she remain in her position for a while longer so as not to weaken the small majority in the House:
It's also critical that South Carolina gets a conservative candidate to replace Lindsey Graham but guess who gave a "full throated" endorsement to the warmongering RINO hack this week... SMH
ReplyDeleteDefinitely wasn't what I expected. Isn't there anybody else there that Trump could endorse beside that spineless RINO.
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