'Florida is still red!': Dem 'Blue Wave' misses Sunshine State; GOP wins, but just by a whisker

More Floridians voted in the 2026 midterm elections than in the previous gubernatorial election, contributing to closely contested statewide races and several political changes across the Tampa Bay area. But while Democrats made gains in several local races and secured control of both chambers of Congress nationally, Republicans held on to the governor’s mansion and Florida's U.S. Senate seat. According to unofficial results from the Florida Division of Elections, 8,333,641 Floridians cast ballots in the November 3 election, representing 60.81% of the state's 13.7 million active registered voters.