Democrats are hoping for a momentum-shifting victory while Republicans look to dampen their rival party’s 2024 expectations in a Central Florida special election for state House District 35 that begins Tuesday with the party primaries.
Three Democrats and three Republicans are vying to advance to the general election on Jan. 16, which will fill the vacancy left when former Republican state Rep. Fred Hawkins resigned earlier this year to become president of South Florida State College in Highlands County.
January’s general election, scheduled by Gov. Ron DeSantis 10 days into the 2024 legislative session, is also one day after the Iowa GOP presidential caucuses.
The district in eastern Orange and Osceola counties is almost equally divided between Republicans, Democrats and independents with about 37,000 each, making it an important bellwether for whether Democrats can win back the swing districts it lost in 2022.
Democrats flipping the seat blue could also give the party a huge boost going into the 2024 election and embarrass DeSantis on the national stage.
Republicans are hoping to hold onto a seat that would have been won by President Joe Biden in 2020, potentially helping to make the argument that the GOP’s lock on the state isn’t going away any time soon.
The Republicans
The three Republicans running are Erika Booth, a member of the Osceola School Board; Ken Davenport, a flight attendant and former probation officer; and Scotty Moore, the former director of a Christian nonprofit.
Booth, 45, of St. Cloud, is married to Ricky Booth, an Osceola County commissioner. Her website states that she will “protect our children from indoctrination” and crack down on illegal immigration.
She also states that she will “defend our God-given rights as enshrined in the Constitution. ALL OF THEM,” and calls for auditing election results to maintain “election integrity.”
Davenport, 54, of Orlando, came in second to Hawkins in the 2022 GOP primary. On his website, he advocates for people’s freedom to “make their own informed healthcare decisions” and to protect medical privacy, including opposing “unnecessary government mandates.”
He also backs gun rights, opposes abortion, and “prioritizing the improvement and strengthening of our education system.”
Moore, 44, of Orlando, was the GOP candidate for Congress who lost to Democrat Rep. Darren Soto in 2022. He was barred from a WESH debate over the station’s COVID vaccine requirements, for which WESH was later fined $10,000 by the state Department of Health.
Moore states he is “100% pro-life” and backs gun rights and lower taxes. He wants to “empower parents” when it comes to education and calls for securing Florida’s maritime border from illegal immigration.
The Democrats
The three Democrats running for their party’s nomination are Rishi Bagga, a civil attorney and the Democratic candidate for the seat in 2022; Marucci Guzmán, the executive director of the nonprofit Latino Leadership; and Tom Keen, who has served on Orlando’s Citizens’ Police Review Board and Veteran Advisory Council.
Bagga, 41, of Orlando, was the Democratic candidate for the seat in 2022. He would push for a state assistance program “to make sure that they don’t lose their homes” amid soaring property insurance rates.
He also wants to diversify Florida’s economy and promote higher-paying jobs, give local governments flexibility in spending tourism taxes, require background checks on guns, and expand Medicaid. He opposes Florida’s pending six-week abortion ban.
Guzmán, 40, of Orlando, cited her priorities on her website as ensuring affordable healthcare, lower prescription drug costs, and “slashing the cost of insurance and housing.” She also wants to fully fund public schools and give teachers raises while keeping “Tallahassee politicians out of our classrooms.”
She also called for “common sense” gun laws such as universal background checks and pledged to stand up for women’s reproductive rights against “radical politicians.”
Keen, 58, of Orlando, came in a close second to Bagga in the 2022 primary. His listed priorities on his website include committed funding for affordable housing, combating the insurance crisis, expanding access to abortion by rolling back recent GOP-passed laws, and acting as “a brick wall against the Radical Republicans who want to ban books and punish free speech.”
Keen also wrote that DeSantis’ and Republicans’ “attacks on our LGBTQ friends and family are cowardly and despicable.”
The three Democrats faced off in a debate co-hosted by Spectrum News 13 and the Orlando Sentinel in October. The Republican candidates did not all agree to attend a planned GOP debate so it was not held.
How to vote
Early voting for the primary in Orange County continues until Sunday from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Supervisor of Elections Office, the Alafaya Branch Library, and the Lake Nona Campus of Valencia College.
In Osceola County, early voting continues until Saturday from 9 a.m. to 6 p.m. at the Supervisor of Elections Office in Kissimmee and the Narcoossee Community Center in St. Cloud.
Precinct polls will be open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. on Election Day on Tuesday in both counties.
