Coup d'état

Rep. Debbie Dingell (D-MI) said Rep. Haley Stevens' (D-MI) surprise CNN endorsement of Republican Mike Rogers over Democrat Abdul El-Sayed in Michigan's Senate race was "painful," noting Stevens had repeatedly promised not to turn on El-Sayed. Stevens cited frustration with El-Sayed's Israel-focused rhetoric and his campaigning with streamer Hasan Piker; her fiancé, disability lawyer and Democratic donor Jason Turkish, had endorsed Rogers days earlier. Reports, including from the Washington Post, say Turkish played such an outsized role in Stevens' failed primary campaign against El-Sayed that aides met to limit his influence. The defection cost Stevens her state party membership and sparked backlash, but other Democrats followed, including former Sen. Joe Manchin, ex-Rep. Hansen Clarke, state Rep. Karen Whitsett, and a Detroit councilwoman urging split-ticket voting.

El-Sayed and allies including Elizabeth Warren rallied voters ahead of Election Day, with El-Sayed reporting his largest fundraising day of the campaign. More than 2.3 million Michigan voters had already cast ballots before polls opened statewide.

Republicans in Florida's Naples-area congressional district are heading into a crowded primary to succeed Representative Byron Donalds, who is running for governor. The race to fill his seat has drawn a notably unusual field, including several candidates who previously ran for or served in Congress representing other states before relocating to Florida.

Much of the contest has centered on candidates competing to demonstrate loyalty to President Trump and establish credibility as genuine Floridians, producing what commentators have described as an unusually chaotic and closely watched down-ballot primary. Donalds enters Tuesday's primary as the GOP gubernatorial frontrunner with Trump's endorsement, facing Lt. Gov. Jay Collins, former House Speaker Paul Renner, and businessman James Fishback, each arguing he needs to be challenged or replaced as the party's standard-bearer; Governor DeSantis has declined to endorse a successor. The winner will face Democrat David Jolly, a former Republican, in November. The outcome matters for prediction markets tracking control of a safely Republican House seat, as well as broader signals about Trump-aligned candidate strength heading into the 2026 midterms and Florida's leadership transition.

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.