Socialists capture major Florida victory on hit-or-miss night for Trump-endorsed primary candidates
Tuesday night’s primary elections featured closely watched federal races from sunny South Florida to the frigid Alaskan tundra and two states in between, all of which will help decide whether Republicans maintain control of Congress, or whether Democrats overtake them. Three states also featured critical gubernatorial primary elections. Observers are already using the race results as bellwethers to gauge Trump’s grip over the GOP and the power of the emergent socialist movement. Here’s what stood out: A socialist will have a chance to unseat a sitting Republican senator after upsetting a heavily favored opponent who outspent her nine-to-one. Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) member and Democratic state Rep. Angie Nixon scored a massive upset in the state’s Democratic primary for U.S. Senate. Nixon ran against retired Army Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, a prominent critic of Trump who played a central role in the left’s failed 2019 impeachment attempt, who was expected to emerge victorious. She defeated Vindman by almost 12 points, despite his $16.3 million war chest, compared to hers of only about $1 million. As of July, Vindman had spent about $9 million on the race, while Nixon had spent just over $700,000. TRUMP’S HANDPICKED DESANTIS SUCCESSOR WINS CROWDED GOP PRIMARY FOR FLORIDA GOVERNOR Nixon will square off in a statewide race against Sen. Ashley Moody, R-Fla. Across the country, some of Trump’s endorsed candidates won their respective races, while others struggled. Trump-endorsed Rep. Byron Donalds, R-Fla., won the Sunshine State’s Republican gubernatorial primary against a field that included Lt. Gov. Jay Collins and outsider James Fishback. Donalds won 47%, compared with 25% for Collins and 10.5% for Fishback. Donalds will face former Florida Republican congressman-turned-Democrat David Jolly, who won the nod for the job on the Democratic side. TRUMP FLEXES GOP MUSCLE IN ARIZONA PRIMARIES AS DEMS DODGE FAR-LEFT UPSET Likewise, Republican Sen. Ashley Moody, herself a Trump endorsee, took home a victory in a special Senate primary election to finish the remainder of Secretary of State Marco Rubio’s U.S. Senate term, which ends in 2028. Moody was appointed to the seat last year after Rubio joined the Trump administration. Republican Rep. Randy Fine of Florida’s 6th Congressional District, also endorsed by Trump, easily won his reelection bid. However, it wasn’t all smiles for Team Trump. Scandal-plagued incumbent Rep. Cory Mills, R-Fla., who represents the state’s 7th Congressional District, lost his race to challenger and former TV anchor Ryan Elijah. Trump endorsed Mills in February, but the congressman is facing a wide-ranging House Ethics Committee investigation into possible campaign finance violations, allegations of assault against a romantic partner and allegations of improperly received or solicited gifts. Mills has denied wrongdoing. The 7th District leans red, meaning Elijah should have an edge come November. Meanwhile, Catalina Lauf, who scored an 11th-hour endorsement from Trump last week, lost her bid to fill Donalds’ seat in Florida’s 19th Congressional District in a race that featured several unusual political twists. Media executive Jim Schwartzel won the five-way race with 29.1% of the vote, while Lauf earned 22%. Businessman Jim Oberweis placed third with 15.7% of the vote. Lauf and Oberweis are familiar rivals, having squared off in a crowded midwestern Republican primary years ago. Both ran in Illinois’ 14th Congressional District back in 2020. Oberweis won that round, but lost to a Democrat in the general election. Two years later, Lauf ran unsuccessfully in Illinois’ 11th Congressional District, though that race did not feature Oberweis. The fourth-place finisher in Tuesday night’s 19th Congressional District race in Florida was former Rep. Madison Cawthorn of North Carolina, who was defeated in 2022 amid scandal and after attempting to change districts. Schwartzel is all but certain to win his November general election in the deep red district. AMERICA’S REDDEST STATE CROWNS GOP GOVERNOR NOMINEE A similar story played out in the western U.S. In Wyoming’s U.S. Senate primary, Trump-endorsed Rep. Harriet Hageman, who serves as the state’s at-large congresswoman, won in a landslide. She defeated cattle rancher Sam Mead. With 80% of the votes counted, Hageman held a 62% to 28% lead over Mead, with three others lagging well behind. However, in Wyoming’s gubernatorial primary, Republican voters spurned Trump’s choice, electing state Sen. Eric Barlow over Megan Degenfelder, the state’s superintendent of public instruction. Barlow, too, won decidedly, holding a lead of 50% to Degenfelder’s 29.7% with three quarters of the votes counted. Both races were called shortly after polls closed. TRUMP-ALIGNED CONSERVATIVE EMERGES FROM CROWDED PRIMARY TO DECIDE WHO FILLS WYOMING’S LONE HOUSE SEAT Wyoming’s Secretary of State Chuck Gray won a competitive five-way primary, garnering 25% of the vote. Businessman Steve Freiss earned 20.7% of the vote. Army veteran Kevin Christensen won 17.8% of the vote. The state hasn’t elected a Democrat in a statewide race since 2006, and that trend is likely to continue in November. Incumbent Republican Sen. Dan Sullivan finished second in the state’s non-partisan primaries, and will move on to the general election where he will face three other candidates, including former Democratic congresswoman Mary Peltola, the top vote-getter, in November. Trump buried the losses in a post on TRUTH Social. “A lot of great WINS tonight!!!” he said. VETERAN DEM DEFEATS SCANDAL-PLAGUED FORMER LAWMAKER, PROGRESSIVE CHALLENGER IN TRUMP’S BACKYARD On the House side, a familiar face won in the newly redrawn 20th Congressional District in Florida. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., was drawn out of the 25th District, which she currently represents. Wasserman Schultz defeated four other candidates, including self-proclaimed socialist activist Elijah Manley, a serious contender who raised nearly $1 million in his bid. Despite the fundraising haul, Manley placed third behind former mayor of Broward County Dale Holness. Manley argued on Monday night in an appearance on NBC News that it was inappropriate for Wasserman Schultz to run in the 20th District when she lives in what is now the 22nd District, and said Democrats “need fresh leaders” in Washington. He also argued that it was inappropriate for a White person to occupy the seat.
Inside the tension that drove Trump’s South Korea alliance from ‘historic new era’ to military pullback
President Donald Trump is scaling back major joint military exercises with South Korea after Seoul declined to support U.S. operations against Iran, a sharp U-turn with an ally his administration publicly praised just days prior. The move came just three days after Secretary of State Marco Rubio called South Korea an “indispensable partner” and said the allies had entered a “historic new era” of cooperation following Trump’s state visit to Seoul last fall. Victor Cha, the Korea chair at the Center for Strategic and International Studies, told Fox News Digital that Trump appears to see the drill reduction as a win-win for the U.S. — pressure Seoul to move faster on investment and burden-sharing while offering Kim incentives to reopen diplomacy. “He sees this as a two for one,” Cha said. “A combination of things led to Trump’s frustration that South Korea is not moving the trade and investment framework agreement on investments faster and his desire to meet the North Korean leader.” TRUMP ORDERS MAJOR CUT TO US-SOUTH KOREA DRILLS AS NORTH KOREA RAMPS UP MISSILE TESTS Behind the administration’s recent praise of Seoul, strains have been building, potentially leading to the mixed-messaging. Trump has grown frustrated with the slow rollout of a $350 billion trade and investment framework, commercial disputes involving American companies and what he sees as South Korea’s unwillingness to do more for U.S. priorities, Cha detailed. “That combination of things led Trump to make a decision where he said, ‘Hey, yeah, I’m gonna scale down these exercises maybe it’ll get a response from Kim Jong-un. At the same time, the South Koreans are rich, they should be doing their own exercises and like we should not be paying for them.’” The deal would bring substantial South Korean investment to the United States while offering Seoul expanded cooperation on shipbuilding and nuclear-powered submarines. But the first investments have moved slowly, despite Trump’s earlier threat to raise tariffs on South Korean goods by 25%, while parallel agreements with Japan are advancing faster. The pressure on Seoul comes as Trump returns to another unfinished project from his first term: diplomacy with Kim. Trump’s tumultuous relationship with the North Korean leader swung between threats of “fire and fury” and historic summits. The first was in Singapore in 2018 and the second in Hanoi in 2019, which was followed by a third meeting at the Korean demilitarized zone later that year. NORTH KOREA EXPERT WARNS US CAN ‘NEVER TAKE THEIR EYE OFF’ KIM JONG UN FOLLOWING MISSILE TEST DURING IRAN WAR The formal encounters made Trump the first sitting U.S. president to meet a North Korean leader, but the diplomacy ended without a denuclearization deal after negotiations collapsed over the terms of sanctions relief and North Korea’s nuclear program. In announcing the exercise cut, Trump wrote that the drills “send a signal that is totally inappropriate and hostile” to North Korea, which he said “has been unthreatening and respectful” during his second term. The White House did not immediately respond to a request for more details. A War Department official said the department is “actively working on executing the commander in chief’s directive,” while declining to offer details. Kim’s sister, Kim Yo Jong, has said her brother retains good memories of Trump, but North Korea has expanded its nuclear and missile capabilities since the first summits while deepening its ties with Russia and China. Pyongyang has not ruled out returning to diplomacy, but it has also signaled that Washington would first need to abandon its demand for North Korean denuclearization. NORTH KOREA LAUNCHES ANOTHER BALLISTIC MISSILE AS US, SOUTH KOREA PREPARE FOR MILITARY DRILLS “Where they haven’t ruled out negotiations with the U.S., but they have basically said, unless the U.S. accepts their nuclear status, there isn’t really a reason to talk,” Jenny Town, a senior fellow at the Stimson Center and director of 38 North, told Fox News Digital. The drills are more than a show of force. They are where American and South Korean troops practice how to fight together if deterrence fails — from moving forces and equipment to sharing targeting information and operating under a single command structure. Before Trump’s order, this year’s Ulchi Freedom Shield exercise was set to incorporate lessons from the war in Ukraine, including drone warfare, GPS disruption and the prospect of losing communications in a crisis. Those are no longer theoretical concerns for the alliance: North Korean troops have fought alongside Russian forces and brought battlefield experience back to the peninsula. SOUTH KOREAN PRESIDENT JUMPS TO INVEST IN MILITARY AFTER TRUMP CUTS JOINT EXERCISES “The exercises are the biggest military maneuver exercise that the Alliance does every year,” Cha said. “There’s nothing that can substitute for live fire and military exercises.” Town said the last-minute nature of the decision risks creating uncertainty inside the alliance. “This last-minute haphazard way of sending this message really sends a lot of mixed messages, but also creates a lot of angst in the U.S.-South Korea alliance,” she said. Trump’s order drew bipartisan criticism on Capitol Hill. Sen. Mark Kelly, D-Ariz., said: “North and South Korea are still technically at war.” “Our ability to help defend our ally against the North Koreans is because our forces are well-trained and able to coordinate with the South Koreans. Hollowing out these joint exercises is shortsighted and a mistake,” the retired U.S. Navy captain added. Republican Sen. Thom Tillis of North Carolina, a Republican, said reducing the drills “does nothing more than free up thousands of North Korea’s troops to support Putin’s systematic kidnapping, torture, rape, and murder of innocent Ukrainian citizens.” “President Trump is playing right into Kim Jong-Un’s hands,” Sen. Elissa Slotkin, D-Mich., claimed on X. “Our alliance with South Korea is critical to U.S. security and announcing a decision to unilaterally scale back joint exercises, over social media, all while touting a ‘very good relationship’ with Kim, is a gross miscalculation,” she added. “Trump is rewarding a regime that sends weapons and troops to fight
State of play: What to know about California showdown to replace Swalwell after massive scandal
The special election to fill the seat vacated by former Rep. Eric Swalwell, D-Calif., remained undecided in the early Wednesday morning hours. The battle to succeed Swalwell comes after he resigned in April amid sexual assault allegations from at least five women. Prior to the allegations, Swalwell was also making a bid for California’s gubernatorial race, but he dropped that bid as well. Vying for Swalwell’s seat are two women: progressive state Sen. Aisha Wahab and moderate Democrat and Bay Area Rapid Transit Board (BART) President Melissa Hernandez. Tuesday’s primary race will determine who will immediately fill Swalwell’s seat for the remainder of the term. However, it is also serving as the primary race for the midterms, meaning that Wahab and Hernandez will face each other again in November. STATE OF PLAY: HIGHLY WATCHED HONG RACE REMAINS TOO CLOSE TO CALL AS PROGRESSIVES NOTCH KEY PRIMARY WINS Wahab and Hernandez both emerged as the “top-two” vote getters in the special election’s jungle primary race held on June 16 for California’s 14th Congressional District. Under California law, elections have open primaries, meaning whoever the top vote getters are, regardless of their party affiliation, will move on to the general election. The race between Hernandez and Wahab mirrors a larger trend reflected across Democratic primary races, as far-left progressive candidates, often backed by the Democratic Socialists of America, are seeking to defeat establishment-backed Democratic candidates. Wahab, who has served in the state Senate since 2022, is running on a campaign platform centered on cracking down on ICE, having co-authored legislation making it easier for citizens to sue agents, lowering prescription drug prices and pushing for investments in green and renewable energy. She has received the backing of Our Revolution, a group that was founded by Sen. Bernie Sanders, I-Vt., Attorney General Rob Bonta, and fellow progressives Congresswoman Pramila Jayapal and Congressman Greg Casar. Hernandez, on the other hand, has taken a moderate approach on key issues such as immigration. Hernandez, who is the daughter of Mexican immigrants, acknowledged that the immigration system is “broken” but that she “supports smart border security and regional cooperation.” She has received the endorsement of close to a dozen Congressional members. But despite Wahab’s critical stance of ICE, she found herself in the hot seat when her father took to Facebook calling for his daughter’s supporters to “call ICE” on Hernandez. The mishap led to Wahab’s campaign to issue an apology on its website.
America’s reddest state crowns GOP governor nominee
Wyoming Republicans chose former state House Speaker and current state Sen. Eric Barlow on Tuesday as their nominee for governor in the race to succeed outgoing Gov. Mark Gordon. The selection tees up the likely next person to move into the governor’s mansion in January, considering the deep-red roots that run in Wyoming’s statewide officials. Gordon considered seeking a third term and challenging Wyoming’s two-term-limit law, before ultimately deciding against another bid. This left Republicans with an open contest to replace him in November’s midterms. Trump-endorsed State Superintendent Megan Degenfelder came in second behind Barlow Tuesday, while Marine Corps colonel and 2022 gubernatorial candidate Brent Bien finished third. 2026 MIDTERMS: PRIMARIES, KEY RACES AND ELECTION RESULTS Barlow emerged from a four-way primary that featured Degenfelder, Bien and professional bull rider Curt Blake who had less than 1,000 votes with 26% of the total counted. He will face Democrat Kenneth Casner in the Nov. 3 general election. REPUBLICAN SURVIVES PRIMARY ON TIM WALZ’S OLD CONGRESSIONAL TURF AS DEMS EYE SEAT FLIP Degenfelder and Barlow entered the final stretch of the campaign on roughly similar financial footing, reporting about $1.3 million and $1.2 million raised, respectively, according to campaign finance figures cited by The Associated Press. Bien reported raising about $192,000, while Blake reported no money raised. Republicans enter the general election with a substantial political advantage in Wyoming. Every statewide elected office is currently held by a Republican. The governor’s race is one of several open-seat contests at the top of Wyoming’s ballot this year. The state also has open races for U.S. Senate, U.S. House, secretary of state and superintendent of public instruction, creating an unusually large turnover in Wyoming’s political leadership.
Democrats pick their fighter for uphill bid to flip deep-red Senate seat
Former state representative James Byrd advanced Tuesday against former golf club greenskeeper Billy Benavidez in Wyoming’s Democratic primary race for the newly opened Senate seat. Incumbent Republican Sen. Cynthia Lummis announced in December that she would not seek re-election, saying she did not have the energy for another six-year term and creating an open Senate seat in deep-red Wyoming. Byrd was an exploration geophysicist in the energy industry then later became an IT project manager and software consultant. WYOMING OFFICIAL FACES BACKLASH AFTER POSTING ‘HANG BAD JUDGES’ COMMENT ON ABORTION RULING He served in the Wyoming House of Representatives for a decade, beginning in 2009, and has touted his bipartisan approach to lawmaking in a majority Republican legislature. The Senate seat has been held by Republicans since 1962. Joseph O’Mahoney was the last Democrat elected to the seat, winning in 1954, while Democrat John J. Hickey was appointed to the seat in 1961 and served until November 1962. The moderate Democratic candidate ran a Wyoming-first campaign running on protecting public lands, supporting energy jobs and lowering rural healthcare costs. SON OF REPUBLICAN MEGADONOR THROWS HAT IN THE RING FOR OPEN AT-LARGE HOUSE SEAT IN WYOMING His opponent, Benavidez, ran as a more libertarian-leaning Democrat, campaigning on individual liberty, opposition to government surveillance, free-market policies, congressional term limits, and reducing the power of the federal government. Byrd has criticized President Donald Trump over tariffs, arguing they have hurt Wyoming beef and agricultural products by reducing access to foreign markets. TRUMP BET TARIFFS WOULD BRING BACK AMERICAN FACTORY JOBS. NEW REPORT SAYS IT DIDN’T WORK On immigration, Byrd has taken a more moderate stance than many Democrats, supporting stronger border security and enforcement while opposing family separation and backing broader immigration reform and expanded legal pathways for workers. Byrd has also backed expanding data centers in Wyoming, arguing they could diversify the state’s economy, create jobs and take advantage of Wyoming’s abundant energy resources.
Republican who kicked Liz Cheney out of Congress seeks higher office in reddest state
Wyoming Republicans chose Rep. Harriet Hageman, R-Wy., on Tuesday as their nominee for U.S. Senate in the race to succeed retiring Republican Sen. Cynthia Lummis. Lummis, elected to the Senate in 2020 after serving four terms in the U.S. House , announced she would not seek a second term, opening the seat in one of the nation’s most reliably Republican states. Hageman emerged from a five-way Republican primary featuring former Kirby Mayor Sam Mead, Jill Edwards, John Holtz and former environmental services business owner Jimmy Skovgard. 2026 MIDTERMS: PRIMARIES, KEY RACES AND ELECTION RESULTS Hageman, in the country’s most red state based on registered voter percentage, entered the race as the best-known and best-funded candidate in the field. She is seeking a promotion to the upper chamber. President Donald Trump endorsed Hageman after also backing her successful 2022 campaign to unseat former Rep. Liz Cheney in Wyoming’s Republican House primary. Now serving her second term as Wyoming’s lone U.S. House member, Hageman rose to national prominence with her victory over Cheney. Cheney became Trump’s biggest target in 2022 after she served as one of the only two Republicans on the House Committee investigating the January 6 Capitol riots alongside fellow GOP Rep. Adam Kinzinger, R-IL, who did not seek reelection that year. The ousted Wyoming congresswoman, daughter of Vice President Dick Cheney, become one of Trump’s most prominent Republican critics. TRUMP-BACKED NOMINEES DOMINATE PRIMARY CONTESTS AS PRESIDENT TIGHTENS PARTY VICE GRIP Hageman will now face the Democratic nominee in the Nov. 3 general election — though with Wyoming’s deep red roots, it’s highly unlikely the single U.S. House seat will flip blue this year. The at-large seat is ranked by the bipartisan Cook Political Report as solidly Republican with a R+23, the best odds of any Senate race this election cycle. Republicans enter the general election with a substantial advantage in Wyoming. All of the state’s statewide elected offices are currently held by Republicans. The Senate contest is part of an unusually large turnover in Wyoming’s political leadership. For the first time in 32 years, the state has open races for governor, U.S. Senate and U.S. House in the same election cycle.
Your favorite cocktail could be an unexpected casualty of Trump’s looming trade fight
President Donald Trump’s latest trade fight with Canada could soon spill into your cocktail glass, with a looming 50% tariff on Canadian spirits putting bars, restaurants and liquor stores on edge. Chris Swonger, president and CEO of the Distilled Spirits Council, said the stakes cut both ways, saying the tariff could hit U.S. hospitality businesses while also potentially pressuring Canada to put American spirits back on its shelves. “First and foremost, great thanks to President Trump because he has recognized that our industry has lost 73% of our American distilled spirits exports to Canada as a result of the provincial ban of purchasing American distilled spirits,” Swonger told Fox News Digital. “We are hopeful that an agreement will be made between the Trump administration and Canadian politicians to put American spirits back on the shelves,” he added. FROM BOURBON TO BORDEAUX: TRUMP’S TARIFFS SPILL INTO GLOBAL BOOZE MARKETS The new tariff threat marks the latest escalation in a trade fight that has already sent U.S. spirits exports to Canada plunging. In retaliation for earlier U.S. tariffs, some Canadian provinces pulled American spirits from store shelves. Trump and Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney held last-minute talks Tuesday as the two sides raced to avert the 50% tariffs before the midnight deadline. The tariffs cover roughly $20 billion in Canadian imports, including liquor, dairy products, vehicles, hockey equipment and other goods. Canadian whisky, vodka, gin, rum, wine and beer are among the products facing the new levy. Canada had been a roughly $250 million annual market for American distillers before the trade dispute, but fell from the second-largest destination for U.S. spirits to sixth in 2025, according to DISCUS data previously reported by Fox News Digital. From March through December, exports plunged from $203 million in 2024 to $60 million in 2025 — a roughly $143 million drop. The fallout has been especially significant for Kentucky, which produces 95% of the world’s bourbon and supports more than 23,000 industry jobs, according to the Kentucky Distillers’ Association. Swonger said the prospect of steep tariffs on Canadian liquor could prove to be the leverage needed to persuade Canadian officials to reopen their market to U.S. producers. “Considering applying a 50% tariff on Canadian distilled spirits would hopefully be the trigger, the forcing mechanism to get the Canadian province leaders to put American spirits back on the shelves,” he said. US WHISKEY EXPORTS TO CANADA COLLAPSE NEARLY 70% AFTER TRUMP TARIFF FIGHT The stakes extend beyond distillers on both sides of the border. Canadian whisky and other distinctive Canadian spirits are consumed by Americans at home and served by U.S. bars and restaurants, meaning a new trade barrier could reverberate through the hospitality industry. Swonger said the U.S. historically exports roughly $220 million worth of distilled spirits to Canada annually, while Canadian producers have exported more than $500 million worth of spirits to the much larger U.S. market. But Swonger cautioned that the American spirits industry ultimately does not want the tariffs to take effect. He warned a 50% levy would be “absolutely devastating to the Canadian distilled spirits industry” and would have “a real impact on the American hospitality economy.” ‘WE WERE RIGHT’: HE TOOK TRUMP’S TARIFFS TO THE SUPREME COURT AND WON Unlike products that can simply be swapped for a domestic equivalent, Swonger argued that spirits are distinctive products. American consumers seek out Canadian whisky, while Canadian consumers have increasingly embraced American whiskey. The industry’s preferred outcome, he said, remains a return to free trade rather than an escalating tariff battle. “We’re an industry that thrives on zero-for-zero tariffs and zero trade barriers,” Swonger said. With negotiations continuing ahead of the deadline, Swonger said distillers are anxiously waiting to see whether Trump’s pressure campaign produces a deal. “We hope we can get back to that tomorrow,” he said.
Potential successor to cowboy hat-wearing Dem tops crowded Florida primary
Retiring Rep. Frederica Wilson’s chosen successor has won the crowded Democratic primary to replace her in Congress. Miami-Dade County Commissioner Oliver Gilbert is now likely to follow Wilson, D-Fla., to Congress representing her safe blue seat in Florida’s 24th Congressional District. The district is located in South Florida and includes part of Miami. It remains largely Democratic after Florida Republicans redrew the state’s congressional map this year, though areas along the shore, including Miami Beach, are now part of a neighboring constituency. Wilson has been in Congress since 2011, first representing Florida’s 17th Congressional District for a single term before redistricting spurred her to run in the 24th. TRUMP FLEXES GOP MUSCLE IN ARIZONA PRIMARIES AS DEMS DODGE FAR-LEFT UPSET She is perhaps best known for her eccentric attire, which centers on brightly colored wide-brimmed hats that Wilson regularly wears both inside and outside the U.S. Capitol. Her exit from Congress at the end of this year spurred a mad dash among Democrats to replace her, with seven people running in the party’s primary. House Democratic leaders have stayed out of the race so far but are likely to coalesce behind the now-chosen winner. Wilson emphatically endorsed Democrat Oliver Gilbert in the race, declaring at a rally for the candidate, “If I am endorsing you, everybody in District 24 should be endorsing you.” And while competitive, the race was notable in that it was not one of the litany of high-profile clashes between establishment Democrats and the far-left that have come to define the 2026 midterm season. BERNIE SANDERS, DSA REVEAL DEMANDS FOR DEM PARTY AFTER SOCIALISTS SWEEP NEW YORK ELECTIONS Far-left Democrats across the country, many linked to the Democratic Socialists of America (DSA), have been posing competitive challenges and, in some cases, even unseating incumbent lawmakers within the party. Elsewhere in Florida, DSA member Oliver Larkin challenged moderate Rep. Jared Moskowitz, D-Fla., in a district drawn to more heavily favor Republicans this year. Self-described socialist Elijah Manley is one of many challengers to Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz, D-Fla., who has generated controversy for running in a majority-Black district after her own seat was changed by the Florida GOP-backed new congressional map. Wasserman Schultz won Tuesday night.
Federal judge blocks Trump admin plan to move FBI headquarters to Reagan Building
A federal judge has blocked the Trump administration’s plan to move FBI headquarters into Washington, D.C.’s Ronald Reagan Building, preserving the previously selected Greenbelt, Maryland, site for the bureau’s long-planned new headquarters. U.S. District Judge Theodore Chuang ruled Monday that the FBI and General Services Administration’s (GSA) decisions to select the Reagan Building were “not in accordance with law” and exceeded their statutory authority. The court also found the FBI’s decision to redirect previously appropriated funds toward the move was arbitrary and capricious. The FBI blasted the decision in a statement to Fox News. REAGAN NATIONAL AIRPORT MAKES DRASTIC CHANGE FOLLOWING DEADLY 2025 MIDAIR COLLISION “This is not the first time courts have tried to undermine the administration in its goal to make government more cost-effective for American taxpayers. The court has chosen to impermissibly intervene for political reasons. This FBI is mission focused and will continue the best course of action to meet the needs of law enforcement. Sycophants seeking to undermine the work of this FBI, which has led the largest reduction in crime in American history under President Trump, will not deter us.” The ruling marks the latest turn in a fight stretching back more than a decade over replacing the deteriorating J. Edgar Hoover Building, which has housed FBI headquarters since 1974. The court noted that the building is obsolete, cannot house all headquarters staff and does not meet applicable security standards. GSA selected Greenbelt in 2023 after Congress directed the agency to choose among three previously identified sites: Greenbelt and Landover, Maryland, or Springfield, Virginia. But in July 2025, the FBI and GSA announced that they instead planned to relocate headquarters to the Reagan Building in Washington. GSA FINDS CHINA-MADE TECH LABELED ‘MADE IN USA,’ ORDERS SWEEPING FEDERAL PROCUREMENT REVIEW Chuang found that those congressional site-selection requirements prevented the agencies from unilaterally choosing a different location. The court said the Reagan Building was not among the three sites Congress authorized and that the FBI exceeded its statutory authority by selecting it. The ruling blocks the FBI from moving forward with its planned headquarters at the Reagan Building and reinstates Greenbelt, Maryland, as the selected site. The judge said Congress would have to change the law if the administration wants to pursue a different location. The White House referred Fox News Digital to the FBI for comment on the ruling. Fox News’ David Spunt contributed to this reporting.
Democrats get their man as scandals put once-safe GOP House seat in play
A retired Navy helicopter pilot backed by the Democratic establishment cruised to victory in the Florida primaries on Tuesday night. Bale Dalton defeated ex-congressman Alan Grayson and progressive Marialana Kinter, another Navy veteran, for the Democratic nomination to run in the Sunshine State’s 7th Congressional District, which is currently represented by Rep. Cory Mills, R-Fla. What was once expected to be a safe GOP seat is now being viewed as a possible pickup opportunity for Democrats in November as scandals continue to pile up for Mills. WATCH: CORY MILLS BLASTS DOJ PROBE AS ‘POLITICAL OP’ AHEAD OF FLORIDA PRIMARY The nonpartisan Cook Political Report downgraded Republicans’ chances of keeping the district from a “safe” to “likely” win for the GOP. It’s rated R+5, meaning Democrats could have a shot with the right candidate. Dalton is already on the House Democratic campaign arm’s “Red to Blue” list, meaning left-wing leaders are expected to pour money and other resources into the race. He was also endorsed by progressive veterans group VoteVets, the moderate-left Blue Dog Coalition, as well as Reps. Kathy Castor, D-Fla., and Lois Frankel, D-Fla. Mills, who served in the Army, has been bogged down by controversies in recent years that have prompted two of his fellow Florida Republicans — Reps. Anna Paulina Luna, R-Fla., and Mike Haridopolos, R-Fla. — to call for him to drop out of the race. REPUBLICAN LAWMAKER WELCOMES HOUSE ETHICS PROBE INTO SEXUAL MISCONDUCT ALLEGATIONS AGAINST HIM They backed challenger Ryan Elijah, a former longtime Orlando news anchor. Mills is under investigation by the House Ethics Committee and allegedly by the Department of Justice (DOJ), though he denied the latter probe’s existence. Mills has also denied all wrongdoing. He went into his bid for a third term endorsed by President Donald Trump, though the commander-in-chief has not spoken on the allegations of sexual harassment and financial impropriety that have dogged the sitting Republican incumbent.