Charlie Crist's Successor Will Be a Republican

Matt Vespa | November 08, 2022 8:15 PM

It’s a red sweep, at least in the Sunshine State. Incumbent Gov. Ron DeSantis crushed Democratic Rep. Charlie Crist, and Sen. Marco Rubio (R-FL) handily beat Democratic Rep. Val Demmings. And now, Crist’s former district will be represented by a Republican. Anna Paulina Luna safely cruised to victory in Florida’s 13^th congressional race. It’s Pinellas County, which leans red, so maybe Crist’s career in public life was screwed anyway.

Decision Desk HQ projects Anna Paulina Luna (R) wins election to the U.S. House in Florida’s 13th Congressional District.

D to R Flip.#DecisionMade: 7:56pm EST

Follow more results here: https://t.co/ogd3AkeoyM pic.twitter.com/G7SRbFcnDa
— Decision Desk HQ (@DecisionDeskHQ) November 9, 2022

Knocked 50,000 doors
Made 89,000 phone calls
Outspent 2:1 in primary
Outspent 12:1 in general
Today we made history.
My name is Anna Paulina Luna and I am going to be the next representative for FL-13!
Thank you Pinellas! I look forward to serving you in DC!
— Anna Paulina Luna (@VoteAPL) November 9, 2022

Wendy Davis faced the same political pickle in Texas, which explains her disastrous 2014 gubernatorial run: she was probably going to lose her state senate race, so she decided to get slaughtered by Greg Abbott in a governor’s race.

Florida 13 was one of the races to watch this cycle—and the GOP easily picked it up (via Politico):

DeSantis muscled a redistricting map through this year that could see the GOP pick up as many as four additional House seats in the state. Two seats definitely on the radar: Florida’s 13th Congressional District, where polls have shown a tight battle between Democrat Eric Lynn and Anna Paulina Luna, and Florida’s 27th Congressional District, a contest between Rep. María Elvira Salazar and state Sen. Annette Taddeo. A GOP surge in Miami-Dade may doom Taddeo’s effort to knock out the GOP incumbent. A Lynn victory over Luna would likely stop Republicans from a four-seat pickup.