Florida’s 8th Congressional District House Race

Florida's primaries produced a mixed picture for both parties ahead of November's general election. Rep. Byron Donalds won the Republican gubernatorial nomination with Trump's endorsement and a large financial edge, beating Lt. Gov. Jay Collins, former House Speaker Paul Renner and newcomer James Fishback despite Gov. Ron DeSantis's public misgivings; Donalds would become Florida's first Black governor if elected. Former Republican congressman David Jolly, running with Gwen Graham as his lieutenant governor pick, won the Democratic nomination over state Rep. Dotie Joseph and others, pitching himself as a centrist who wants to end the culture wars. The two will meet in November to succeed the term-limited DeSantis, in a state where Democrats haven't won the governorship in over 30 years.

Progressive state Rep. Angie Nixon defeated establishment-backed Alex Vindman for the Senate Democratic nomination despite being outspent; she faces Republican Sen. Ashley Moody, who won her primary with Trump's backing, in the special election for Marco Rubio's former seat. Incumbents Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Jared Moskowitz turned back challengers, including Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, in redrawn districts under Florida's new Republican-favored congressional map. Trump-endorsed Cory Mills lost his House primary amid domestic violence allegations, while far-right figures Dan Bilzerian and Madison Cawthorn were also defeated, alongside Rep. Randy Fine's contentious win.

Florida GOP Rep. Cory Mills is running for reelection while under House Ethics Committee investigation over allegations he assaulted a former girlfriend and violated campaign finance laws. Mills denies wrongdoing. Though he touts a Trump endorsement from February, Trump did not include Mills in a recent wave of primary endorsements, and Gov. Ron DeSantis has said he does not support Mills.

Mills faces GOP challengers Ryan Elijah, who has been endorsed by Reps. Anna Paulina Luna and Mike Haridopolos, along with Sarah Ulrich and Michael Don Johnson. His central Florida 7th District seat, which he has won twice, was left unchanged in the state's May redistricting.

The controversy has shifted the race's outlook: Cook Political Report moved the district from "solid red" to "likely red." Democrats see an opening, backing Navy veteran Bale Dalton through the DCCC, while former Rep. Alan Grayson is also running. Voter sentiment in the district is split over whether Mills' record outweighs his perceived effectiveness.

Florida Rep. Cory Mills lost his Republican primary in the state's 7th Congressional District to former TV anchor Ryan Elijah, ending his bid for a third term. Mills's campaign was marked by allegations of sexual misconduct, a court injunction from a former girlfriend, a House Ethics Committee investigation into misconduct and campaign finance claims, and questions about his military record. President Trump had given Mills his "Complete and Total Endorsement" in February, but later distanced himself by excluding Mills from a round of congressional endorsements. Florida incumbents Anna Paulina Luna and Mike Haridopolos, along with Gov. Ron DeSantis, backed Elijah instead.

Elijah will face Democrat and military veteran Bale Dalton in November. The district is expected to remain Republican-leaning under Florida's newly redrawn congressional map, though analysts note the race could factor into broader midterm dynamics as Democrats are currently favored to retake the House majority.

Brevard County, Florida authorities arrested Michael Barnard, 54, after he allegedly sent threatening emails to a judge overseeing one of his cases. Sheriff Wayne Ivey said Barnard used a newly created email address to send two messages telling the judge she had "made several poor decisions" and that he "was coming for her," including a demand that she dismiss a temporary order against him.

Investigators traced the emails to Barnard, who had been served a temporary restraining order just hours before sending the first message. Deputies arrested him at his residence on an existing warrant for violation of probation tied to a prior charge of written threats to kill or cause bodily harm. Barnard was additionally charged with corruption by threat against a public servant and unlawful use of a two-way communications device. He reportedly told agents he was upset about recent developments in his case.

Cassi Taylor, 20, was killed Monday in a chain-reaction crash on I-95 in Brevard County, Florida, after a vehicle ahead of her struck an alligator in the roadway. Taylor swerved to avoid the other car, lost control, and was thrown from her vehicle as it overturned into the center lane, according to the Florida Highway Patrol. A third driver then struck her and fled the scene; that driver has not been located.

Taylor had joined the Indian River County Sheriff's Office on July 20 as a civilian corrections assistant and was set to be sworn in the day she died. She was the daughter of Deputy Scott Burke, a well-known figure in the local community. The sheriff's office mourned her as one of its "newest team members." FHP is asking anyone with information about the hit-and-run driver to come forward.

A Brevard County, Florida, sheriff's deputy and a 26-year-old woman were killed early Sunday in a head-on collision on Interstate 95 near Titusville. Deputy Kevin Morris, 55, was en route to the scene of a deputy-involved shooting in Mims when the crash occurred around 11 p.m. Saturday. The woman, whose identity has not been released, had reportedly attended a beachside wedding earlier that day.

Authorities said the woman's vehicle was traveling north on I-95 before making a U-turn into oncoming lanes, striking Morris's SUV head-on. The reason for the maneuver is unknown, and the Florida Highway Patrol is investigating, including a toxicology exam of the woman. Sheriff Wayne Ivey praised Morris as a dedicated officer and family man who returned to law enforcement in 2021. The earlier shooting in Mims, which Morris was responding to, involved deputies fatally wounding a 79-year-old man who allegedly pointed a firearm at them during a mental health call; that incident remains under separate review.

A Florida Highway Patrol trooper clocked Brevard County Sheriff's Deputy Michael Fultz riding his motorcycle at 111 mph in February but did not arrest him under Florida's "Super Speeder" law, which allows arrests for driving 100 mph or more in a dangerous manner. Body camera video shows the trooper initially say Fultz was "going to jail" before recognizing him as a fellow officer, then issuing only a civil citation. Fultz also lacked a motorcycle endorsement, which went uncited.

Fultz, named Brevard County's 2025 Deputy of the Year in March after fatally shooting a knife-wielding man, resigned in May as Sheriff Wayne Ivey moved to fire him for "egregious misconduct." An internal investigation, prompted by his ex-girlfriend's complaint, found Fultz had used racial slurs, misused the agency's license-plate reader system to search her tag, appeared in a photo mimicking a Nazi salute, and engaged in inappropriate conduct including an on-duty video call. Fultz paid the speeding fine, apologized publicly, and disputed some findings while accepting responsibility for his actions.

Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D-Fla.) won her party's primary in Florida's newly drawn 20th Congressional District, a plurality-Black seat centered on Broward County, after her old 25th District seat was eliminated in Republican-led mid-decade redistricting ordered by Gov. Ron DeSantis. Rather than run in a new, whiter district that favored Trump, she chose to compete in the 20th, drawing criticism from local Black leaders, the Broward Black Democratic Caucus, and Congressional Black Caucus members who saw her candidacy as a threat to Black political representation already weakened by the Supreme Court's rollback of the Voting Rights Act; Democratic Leader Hakeem Jeffries declined to endorse her.

Wasserman Schultz defeated a divided field of four Black challengers — former Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, rapper Luther "Luke" Campbell, Elijah Manley, and Dale Holness — leaning on seniority, fundraising, and an Appropriations Committee seat while her rivals split the opposing vote. Her win makes her the only white House member representing a plurality or majority-Black district heading into 2027, following the elimination of Rep. Steve Cohen's Memphis district by Tennessee Republicans. The broader Florida redistricting effort cut four Democratic-leaning seats ahead of the midterms.

Julia Egler, now 18, is expected to enter a plea and be sentenced Friday in the 2023 killings of her mother, Kelley McCollom, 38, and McCollom's boyfriend, Matthew Szejnrok, 22, at their Palm Bay, Florida home. Egler was 16 at the time of the killings.

Police said Egler initially called 911 claiming an intruder had attacked the victims, but investigators found bloody footprints matching her shoes and other evidence contradicting her account. After being read her Miranda rights, Egler confessed, telling police she waited for the victims with a revolver and knife taken from her mother's room, greeted them by saying "Welcome home," then shot and stabbed them. Investigators cited ongoing family conflict as a motive, including her mother's disapproval of Egler's gender transition and Egler's disapproval of her mother's relationship with Szejnrok.

The case drew national attention after Egler's interrogation video was made public. A grand jury indicted her on two counts of first-degree murder; rather than go to trial, she is expected to accept a plea deal.

Alaska voters headed to the polls Tuesday in primaries shaping contests for U.S. Senate, U.S. House, governor and the legislature, alongside a Florida primary seen as an early indicator for control of Congress. The marquee Alaska race pits Republican incumbent Sen. Dan Sullivan against Democratic former Rep. Mary Peltola, one of 16 candidates in the all-party primary; the top four finishers advance to a November general election decided by ranked choice voting. A same-named challenger, Daniel J. Sullivan Jr., also qualified for the ballot after Republicans failed in court to remove him, and the Justice Department is reportedly investigating whether he entered the race to confuse voters and split support from the incumbent.

Rep. Nick Begich is seeking a second term against independent challenger Bill Hill, while 17 candidates compete to succeed term-limited Gov. Mike Dunleavy. Voters are also deciding a ballot measure on campaign contribution limits. Some polls show Peltola leading in a state that typically favors Republicans, and Democrats view Alaska as a key opportunity as they seek to flip four seats to win Senate control.