Democratic candidate for U.S. Senate Alex Vindman filed paperwork Wednesday to officially qualify for his party’s primary election.
Vindman is an army veteran who rose to national fame after he and his brother were key witnesses in President Donald Trump's first impeachment proceeding in 2019 after Trump pressured Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to investigate Joe Biden and his family. Vindman has been living in Broward County since 2023.
“My wife and I chose Florida because I was raised in New York. Where else could I go?” he told the group of supporters and media gathered outside the state’s Division of Elections office after turning in his paperwork.
Vindman said he’s running to make the state more affordable and represent the interests of Floridians instead of just special interests or the interests of billionaires moving to the state.
“I think that's a fundamental message to get across, that there is a fighter in your corner, not a fighter for corporate interests, not a fighter for billionaire class, but a fighter in your corner,” he said.
Florida has seen a population boom in recent years. The one demographic that’s shrinking is made up of people aged 20 to 29. Vindman said the answer to attracting and keeping younger people to the state is jobs.
“We need to grow 21st century jobs. It's good that the billionaires are moving here from the west coast to, you know, to escape taxes. We want those folks to come but we need them to come with their headquarters. We need them to come with their jobs,” he said.
He also commented on the Florida Legislature’s special session on redistricting next week, criticizing the process.
“There's a concerted effort all along the way to disenfranchise voters, and I will fight against that. It's, frankly, what I think, what I'm known for, because I spoke up against an effort to steal an election, and I'm going to fight against that throughout my career,” he said.
There are several candidates running for the Democratic party's nomination, including Jacksonville state Representative Angie Nixon and former Brevard County School Board member Jennifer Jenkins. Vindman is leading his party's field in campaign fundraising, having raised over $8 million in two months.
But whatever Democratic candidate emerges in August will face an uphill battle statewide. Republican Senator Rick Scott won the last statewide senate race by 13 points, and Republicans outnumber Democrats in voter registration in the state by more than a million people.