Election Day in Florida: Republicans sweep statewide races, Amendment 3 passes

November 6, 2026 By

Florida delivered a bright spot for Republicans on Election Night, with the GOP sweeping statewide races, including governor and senator.

Former Rep. Byron Donalds will be the state’s first Black governor. The Republican beat Democrat David Jolly 50-49, with a difference of about 100,000 votes.

U.S. Sen. Ashley Moody won reelection, beating Democrat Angie Nixon 51-48.

Florida’s cabinet will also remain Republican, with Attorney General James Uthmeier, CFO Blaise Ingoglia and Agricultural Commissioner Wilton Simpson winning reelection.

Meanwhile, Florida homeowners voted themselves a property tax cut. Amendment 3, which raises the homestead exemption and makes other changes to property taxes and how local governments can spend money, won with 62% of the vote.

Amendments 1 and 2, however, did not pass.

Find updates throughout the night on the latest election news in this story.

How News 6 calls election results

For federal and state-level races, such as Congress, the Legislature, and governor, News 6 relies on both the Associated Press and CBS News for race results.

For county and city races, we do not call a race until all precincts are reported.

Any call is approved by our news director before going on the air.

Find all the race results at the links below:

Latest updates

10:44 p.m.

Two U.S. House races remain too close to call.

U.S. House District 7 shows about a 2,000-vote difference between Republican Ryan Elijah and Democrat Bale Dalton. The two are running to replace Cory Mills, whom Elijah ousted in the August primary.

News 6’s Serra Sowers is with the Elijah watch party, and she was there when Elijah spoke to supporters.

In U.S. House District 9, incumbent Rep. Darren Soto is about 1,200 votes ahead of challenger Dan Green. Soto’s district is one of four that were gerrymandered earlier this year by Republicans to oust Democratic representatives. District 9 went from representing parts of two counties to representing seven, with five heavily Republican.

Democrats have won three of the four seats so far, with U.S. House District 9 likely going to a runoff.

News 6’s Stephanie Rodriguez is at Soto’s watch party and was there as he spoke.

10:23 p.m.

David Jolly’s bid to become Florida’s first Democratic governor since 1999 has come to an end.

News 6’s Mike Valente filed this update.

10:12 p.m.

Blaise Ingoglia, Florida’s incumbent chief financial officer, won reelection against Democratic challenger Annette Taddeo, 51-49.

10:07 p.m.

News 6 was there as Byron Donalds spoke as Florida’s governor-elect. You can catch some of that speech below.

10 p.m.

Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier has won reelection, beating Democrat Jose Javier Rodriguez, 51-49.

9:56 p.m.

In a bright spot for Democrats, several Florida House and Senate seats have flipped tonight in their favor in Central Florida.

Maitland Mayor John Lowndes beat incumbent Jason Brodeur to take Florida Senate District 10, 56-44.

In the Florida House, Democrat Eric Gray defeated Republican incumbent Erika Booth to take Florida House District 35, 56-44.

Democrat Darryl Block beat incumbent Republican Rachel Plakon to take Florida House District 36.

Republican incumbent Doug Bankson lost reelection in Florida House District 39 to Democrat Jarod Fox, 45-55.

In the open Florida House District 37, Democrat Jane Aman beat Republican Robert Prater, 59-41. Aman will replace outgoing Republican Susan Plasencia.

In the open Florida House District 38, Democrat Nik Dean beat Republican Emily Duda Buckley 56-44 to take the seat being vacated by Republican David Smith.

Other Florida House and Senate wins from Central Florida tonight so far:

Florida Senate District 8: Republican Jake Johansson beat Democrat Judy M. Ngying, 56-43.
Florida House District 20: Republican Judson Sapp won reelection against Democrat Lee Butler, 71-29.
Florida House District 23: Republican JJ Grow won reelection against Democrat Mark Leland Baker, 71-29.
Florida House District 25: Republican Taylor Yarkosky won reelection against Democrat Farmer Banks Helfrich, 52-48.
Florida House District 26: Republican Nan Cobb won reelection against Democrat Robyn Elaine Lawrence, 61-39.
Florida House District 27: Republican Richard Gentry won reelection against Democrat Andy Ferrari, 65-35.
Florida House District 28: Republican Bill Partington won reelection against Democrat Sammy Jackson, 56-42.
Florida House District 29: Republican Webster Barnaby won reelection against Democrat Don Kanfer, 52-48.
Florida House District 30: Republican Chase Tramont won reelection against Edwin Munoz, 62-38.
Florida House District 31: Republican Matt Woodside beat Democrat Daniel Lewis Cicirelli to win an open seat, 60-40.
Florida House District 32: Republican Brian Hodgers won reelection against Democrat Juan Hinojosa, 58-42.
Florida House District 34: Republican Robert Brackett won reelection against Democrat Jordyn Balderas, 63-37.
Florida House District 40: Democrat RaShon Young won reelection against Republican Tuan Le, 75-25.
Florida House District 42: Democrat Felipe Sousa Lazaballet beat Republican Bonnie Jackson to take an open seat, 62-38.
Florida House District 43: Democrat Samuel Vilchez Santiago beat Republican Jorge Malavet to take an open seat, 66-34.
Florida House District 45: Democrat Leonard Spencer won reelection against Republican Erin Huntley, 55-45.
Florida House District 46: Democrat Jose Alvarez won reelection against Republican Michael Cruz, 68-30.
Florida House District 52: Republican Samantha Scott won reelection against Democrat Pamala Kaye Bivins, 70-30.

9:30 p.m.

The AP projects Florida Commissioner of Agriculture Wilton Simpson will win reelection against Democrat Joey Mendoza Atkins, 51% to 49%.

Attorney General James Uthmeier and CFO Blaise Ingoglia also are holding leads against Democratic challengers.

9:06 p.m.

The Associated Press projects Byron Donalds will beat David Jolly to become the next governor of Florida, the first Black person to win the seat.

8:56 p.m.

Florida Amendment 3, which would raise homestead exemptions and slash property taxes, right now has more than 60% of the vote which, should that hold, is enough to pass.

News 6’s Ashley Garrett is following the returns for Amendment 3.

8:52 p.m.

The race for U.S. House District is extremely tight. Incumbent Rep. Darren Soto has arrived at his watch party to greet voters.

Soto faces Republican challenger Dan Green.

News 6’s Stephanie Rodriguez is at Soto’s watch party.

8:35 p.m.

Republican Ashley Moody wins reelection to the U.S. Senate for Florida, beating Democrat Angie Nixon.

8:33 p.m.

The AP has projected that Republican Rep. Kat Cammack has won reelection to the U.S. House District 3, which includes Marion County.

8:16 p.m.

The Associated Press projects that Democrat Rep. Kathy Castor will win reelection in the Tampa area. This district was heavily gerrymandered by Republicans a few months ago.

Republican Brian Mast is also projected to win reelection in his Florida district, U.S. House District 21.

8:07 p.m.

The Associated Press projects Republican Joe Strada will win election to U.S. House District 11, which includes parts of Lake, Orange and Sumter counties.

Strada beats Democrat James Pericola to take over the Congressional seat for Daniel Webster, who is retiring.

8 p.m.

Polls are now closed in all Florida counties.

The AP projects Republican Rep. Randy Fine has won reelection for U.S. House District 6, which includes parts of Flagler, Volusia, Lake and Marion counties.

The AP projects that Republican Rep. Mike Haridopolos has also won reelection for U.S. House District 8, which includes Brevard County.

7:53 p.m.

One of the biggest races in Central Florida tonight will decide who the new mayor of Orange County is.

News 6’s Nick Neville is in Orlando and filed this report:

“At the Tiffany Moore Russell campaign, the ballroom at DoubleTree by Hilton Orlando Downtown is pretty full.

“They’ve just begun a program. Various speakers and supporters coming up to podium to talk about Moore Russell.

“They’re talking about the history she made as the youngest Orange County commissioner.

“Orlando mayor Buddy Dyer just arrived.”

7:46 p.m.

Down in South Florida, the Associated Press projects that Democrats Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz and Lois Frankel will win reelection.

The AP also projects Republican Rep. Greg Steube will win reelection, and Republican Jim Schwartzel has been elected to take over the U.S. House seat being vacated by Byron Donalds.

7:43 p.m.

In Seminole and Volusia counties, the U.S. House District 7 race will mean a new representative for the area. Your Seminole County Community Correspondent Serra Sowers is with the Ryan Elijah campaign.

7:39 p.m.

Another big statewide race tonight is the U.S. Senate race. News 6’s Keith Jones is with Ashley Moody’s election night party.

7:20 p.m.

News 6’s Mike DeForest is at Byron Donalds’ election night watch party in Hollywood, where people are starting to trickle in.

Meanwhile, News 6’s Mike Valente is with David Jolly’s party in Tampa.

7:10 p.m.

Polls are now closed in Central Florida. You can track results for all races HERE.

As county election supervisors begin processing returns, they have specific procedures to ensure there is no vote tampering.

News 6’s Troy Campbell talked to election officials.

You can also go in-depth with this story HERE.

6:54 p.m.

From News 6’s Mike DeForest:

6:30 p.m.

Polls closed in most of Indiana and Kentucky, but no statewide winners will be declared in those states until after the rest of the polls close at 7 p.m.

This is the same in Florida. Polls in the eastern part of the state will close at 7 p.m., but the western panhandle polls do not close until 8 p.m. That’s because the western counties are in the Central time zone.

6 p.m.

From News 6’s Mike Valente in Tampa:

Doors to the public will open shortly at the Tampa Convention Center, where Democratic gubernatorial candidate David Jolly is holding his Election Night watch party.

His running mate, Gwen Graham—whose father was a Democratic governor in Florida—projected confidence when I spoke with her earlier this evening.

When I started off a question by saying, “Should you assume office…” Graham cut me off and said “win.”

Well, if Jolly and Graham do win tonight, it would qualify as an upset and a potential sign of the electorate’s attitudes nationwide.

5:50 p.m.

U.S. House District 9 candidates make final pitches

One of the most closely watched congressional races in Central Florida is unfolding in District 9 — a newly redrawn district that now stretches across 5,500 square miles.

Democratic incumbent Rep. Darren Soto is fighting to hold onto his seat in a district redrawn to favor Republicans. His challenger is Dan Green, a military veteran who served as deputy assistant secretary of defense during the first Trump administration.

While meeting with supporters at an Osceola County polling place Tuesday, Soto addressed the new makeup of the district ahead of Election Day, outlining his priorities for both longtime and newly added constituents.

“In addition to working on the Indian River Lagoon restoration and helping out our growers and our cattle ranchers, the message is the same for the whole district: We’re here to lower costs to protect our care and stop corruption,” Soto said.

Green said he plans to address the rising cost of living by rolling back regulations and government bureaucracy, which he argues drives prices up.

“We need to have lower tariffs. We need greater price transparency as well,” Green said. “To me, it’s about getting government out of the way, letting the free market operate and having an enduring, stable situation in the Middle East.”

News 6’s Stephanie Rodriguez is following both candidates and will have the latest HERE.

4:17 p.m.

Voters, election officials scramble as flooding impacts Brevard polling places

In Brevard County, residents had to adjust their voting plans because of the widespread flooding.

Six polling places had to be relocated Tuesday.

Some voters told News 6’s Tylisa Hampton that they had to drive further away because of the changes, but it was too important not to vote.

“Well I wanted to do early voting, but I didn’t get a chance,” one voter said. “Vote your opinions and your beliefs.”

If you are a voter in Brevard County, check THIS STORY before you go and make sure your polling place has not changed.

4 p.m.

Donalds ‘at peace’ with campaign, while Jolly optimistic

Republican gubernatorial candidate Byron Donalds cast his ballot Tuesday with his wife Erika in Collier County.

Donalds, who is holding his election night watch party at the Seminole Hard Rock Hotel in Hollywood, told WINK-TV that addressing affordability would be among his top priorities if elected governor.

“Honestly, it’s been a great journey. Really at peace with how we’ve conducted ourselves, how we ran this campaign,” Donalds told the TV station.

News 6’s Mike DeForest will have updates from Donalds’ party HERE.

Meanwhile, his Democratic opponent, David Jolly, greeted voters outside a polling place in Pinellas County Tuesday.

Jolly said he recognized that the odds in this election may be stacked against him.

“It’s Florida,” Jolly said. “The numbers are against the Democratic nominee, but I think what we’re seeing is voters are about to defy history.”

News 6’s Mike Valente will have updates from the Jolly campaign throughout the night HERE.