Low turnout marks South Florida primary as congressional races take shape

Voter turnout remained relatively low across South Florida on Tuesday as voters headed to the polls for Florida’s primary election, with Broward County reporting a turnout of 16.24% and Miami-Dade County at 18.8% by Tuesday evening.

Broward County Supervisor of Elections Joe Scott reported that 217,520 ballots had been cast in the county as of about 6:45 p.m., representing 16.24% of the county’s more than 1.35 million registered voters.

The county has 346 precincts. Of the ballots cast, nearly 35% were submitted by mail, about 28% were cast during early voting and approximately 36.6% were cast on Election Day, according to data released before polls closed at 7 p.m.

In Miami-Dade County, Supervisor of Elections Alina Garcia reported that voter turnout had risen from 12.5% Tuesday morning to 18.8% by Tuesday evening.

Unofficial data showed 243,225 ballots had been cast in Miami-Dade. Of those, 106,278 were mail ballots, 78,483 were cast on Election Day and 58,364 were cast during early voting.

Miami-Dade has 772 precincts and more than 1.28 million registered voters, including approximately 455,470 Republicans and 407,910 Democrats, according to the latest voter registration data.

Four civil rights attorneys from the U.S. Department of Justice were also monitoring polling locations in Miami-Dade as part of the department’s election monitoring initiative.

“We are very confident that everything is going to be just fine,” Garcia said in response to the DOJ’s announcement that the monitoring effort was aimed at promoting transparency and open communication between poll observers and election monitors.

Palm Beach County recorded a higher turnout than either Broward or Miami-Dade.

According to the Palm Beach County Supervisor of Elections Office, the county had 876,150 registered voters, with 202,739 ballots cast as of Tuesday evening. That represented a voter turnout of 23.14%.

Debbie Wasserman Schultz wins Democratic primary

One of the most closely watched contests in South Florida was the Democratic primary for Florida’s newly redrawn 20th Congressional District.

Five Democrats sought the nomination in the heavily Democratic district, hoping to advance to the November general election against the Republican nominee.

U.S. Rep. Debbie Wasserman Schultz was declared the Democratic winner early Tuesday evening.

The Democratic field included rapper and music executive Luther “Uncle Luke” Campbell, former Broward County mayor and commissioner Dale Holness, community organizer Elijah Manley and Wasserman Schultz, who is seeking to represent the newly redrawn district.

Former U.S. Rep. Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick, who is Haitian American, also sought the Democratic nomination. Cherfilus-McCormick resigned from Congress in April ahead of a potential House Ethics Committee expulsion following her indictment on allegations that she stole federal funds. She has denied wrongdoing.

With 99% of precincts reporting, Wasserman Schultz led the Democratic field with 30,021 votes, or 45%, followed by Holness with 15,251 votes, or 23%. Manley received 9,187 votes, or 14%, while Cherfilus-McCormick received 6,109 votes, or 9%. Campbell received 5,584 votes, or 8%.

Brent Andersen wins Republican primary

Brent Andersen was declared the Republican winner in the district and will face Wasserman Schultz in November.

The Republican primary for the district attracted four candidates.

The results reflected the broader political dynamics of the newly redrawn district, which remains heavily Democratic.

The primary election was held from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. across Florida, with election officials continuing to report unofficial results Tuesday night.