Democrats giddy over Vice President Kamala Harris and her election campaign may have to pump the breaks in hopes of winning Florida in November.
Tuesday’s Florida primary elections saw a dismal Democrat turnout in what could be a sign of things to come despite promising polls indicating that, in some cases, Harris trails former President Trump in the Sunshine State by only two points.
But with Republicans now outnumbering Democrats in the state Trump calls home, a Harris victory will need more voter turnout.
“Of the 4,327,859 Democrats who are actively registered to vote in Florida, only about 25.8 percent cast ballots on Tuesday, according to registration figures from the state and turnout numbers from Florida’s Voice,” Newsweek reported.
“The same figures show that over 400,000 more Republicans than Democrats turned out on Tuesday, with roughly 28.9 percent of 5,324,654 registered GOP voters casting ballots,” the outlet added.
Winning the state of Florida would be “an uphill battle” for Harris, Democratic strategist Michael Gordon told Newsweek.
“Who shows up in a primary has more to do with the particular races taking place and the candidates who are running than anything it may portend for the general,” he said. “Having said that, it’s an uphill battle for Harris to win Florida.”
“It has gone from purple to red over the last generation, and there hasn’t been a sufficient demographic or political change that puts it realistically in play for the Democrats,” Gordon added.
On August 20, 2024, Florida held its primary elections, with both Republican and Democratic parties actively encouraging voter turnout. The Florida GOP reported a significant lead in turnout, urging supporters to continue voting to set new records. Key Republican figures like…
— Clarence Terrell (@clarenceTerre) August 20, 2024
Fewer than 10 percent of voters registered as Independents in the state turned out on Tuesday, according to Newsweek which noted that over 3.5 million voters in the Sunshine State are not registered with any party affiliation.
“Florida is a solid red state and Donald Trump is in no danger of losing the Sunshine State to Kamala Harris,” Republican strategist Matt Klink told the outlet.
“National Democrats dream of Florida once again being ‘in play,’ but the grim reality for them is that she will not be competitive there. Republican registration has skyrocketed in recent years and GOP enthusiasm remains high,” Klink said.
While the idea of the Harris-Walz campaign “flipping” Florida this year “would be a significant challenge” for the ticket, it is “not out of the realm of possibility,” according to Craig Agranoff, a Florida Atlantic University adjunct professor.
But Klink pointed out that “the ‘tell’ as to whether Democrats believe that the state is really competitive is whether or not they’re spending scarce advertising dollars here.”
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Originally from New York, Powers graduated from New York University and eventually made her way to sunny South Florida. Powers also contributes to BizPac Review.
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