Miami-Dade County voted blue for the first time since the 2020 elections, despite Republicans winning Florida’s governor and Senate seat.
Governor: Byron Donalds vs. David Jolly
Byron Donalds, the Republican candidate endorsed by President Donald Trump and former governor Ron DeSantis, beat Democratic candidate David Jolly by 1.3 percentage points, becoming the first Black Florida governor.
Within Miami-Dade County, Jolly took the majority with 53% of votes compared to Byron’s 46%.
Donalds, a New York City native and Florida State University alum, was projected to win. Still, the tight margins led Democrats to believe they could elect Jolly as the first Democratic governor since 1999.
Donalds focused on lower taxes, gun rights, greater healthcare price transparency and immigration enforcement. Jolly emphasized health care access, protecting reproductive rights, increasing school funding and strengthening gun safety laws.
U.S. Senate: Ashley Moody vs. Angie Nixon
Republican incumbent Ashley Moody beat Angie Nixon, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, by 1.2 percentage points.
Again, despite the overall Republican win, Nixon won Miami-Dade with 53% of the vote compared to Moody’s 46%.
The tight race for the Florida Senate ended with Moody’s reelection, who was originally appointed by Governor DeSantis in 2025 to fill Marco Rubio’s seat.
Moody ran a “quieter” campaign until a few weeks before the election; she did not grant any major outlet an interview until the end of the election-campaigning period.
In her ads, Moody emphasized public safety, strict immigration enforcement and supported bills to crack down on fraud and help families with hurricane relief funds.
Nixon ran a longer campaign, trying to mobilize voters — especially young, college-aged people who make up one of the Democratic Party’s largest voter bases — through her initiatives for an annual wealth tax on billionaires, expanded Medicaid benefits and more affordable housing units.
Congressional District 27: Maria Elvira Salazar vs. Elliot Rodriguez
The race for Florida’s Congressional District 27 has not been declared at the time of writing..
Maria Elvira Salazar, the Republican incumbent endorsed by Trump, was leading Democrat Elliot Rodriguez by 0.46 percentage points at 11:30 a.m. Eastern on Wednesday, Nov. 4 — the time of print submission.
The district, which includes the University of Miami campus, became a battleground for two former journalists: Salazar was an anchor on Fox News and Rodriguez was a CBS Miami anchor.
Both candidates are also children of Cuban immigrants, but despite their similar backgrounds, they differ on most key initiatives.
During her time in Congress, Salazar focused on tax relief for small businesses, denounced authoritarian leaders like Nicolas Maduro and increased home availability. Weeks before the election, she ran an ad against the harsh treatment of immigrants — a sentiment that her opponent echoed.
But Rodriguez wants to expand Medicaid eligibility and benefits as well as assistance funds for first-time homeowners.
For young voters at the University of Miami, the results demonstrate a lesson: Every vote has weight and local sentiments shape overall state trends.
“The results we witnessed last night across Florida may not reflect the outcomes some of us were hoping for, but the increased voter engagement seen across the country is incredibly encouraging,” said Sophia Graf, a junior at UM. “Regardless of the outcomes, it is critical that we carry this engagement forward and continue working toward meaningful and lasting change.”
The election results highlight a political divide between Miami-Dade County and the state-wide view. While Republicans maintained their presence in Florida’s offices with wins from Donalds and Moody, Miami-Dade’s shift to blue underscores a change within the county that hasn’t been seen in years.