Florida, not too long ago, was considered a swing state. It was the controversial final state that was decided in the 2000 presidential election. Barack Obama won Florida in both 2008 and 2012.
However, in the years since, Florida has trended more solidly Republican, with Donald Trump winning it in all three of his presidential runs, while the state has elected only Republican governors since the 1990s.
The Democrats, though, got a big win in the Sunshine State this week, at the state legislative level- right in the president’s backyard.
According to MS NOW, Democrat Emily Gregory won the State House race in the district that contains Mar-a-Lago in Palm Beach. She defeated Republican Jon Maples, who had been endorsed by the president, in an upset. It was a special election, after the previous holder of the seat was appointed Palm Beach County clerk and comptroller by Gov. Ron DeSantis.
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Trump had won the district by 11 points in 2024.
BREAKING: Democrat Emily Gregory wins Florida House District 87 special election, defeating Republican Jon Maples and flipping the seat from red to blue.
This is the Mar-a-Lago district — Trump won it by 11 points in 2024 and heavily promoted Maples. pic.twitter.com/fQOm6TYQpq
— MeidasTouch (@MeidasTouch) March 24, 2026
Maples does not appear to be related to Marla Maples, the president’s second ex-wife.
“I say back yourself. You know, it only takes you getting off the sidelines to make a difference, and if you want the world to look different, then you have to go out and make it different,” Gregory told MS NOW. “I think we’ve learned over the last several years that no one is coming to save us. We have to save ourselves.”
Imagine flipping Donald Trump’s home district and then casually brushing off the fact that he is now your constituent. Emily Gregory just pulled off the ultimate political flex focusing on real issues like property insurance instead of the former president. pic.twitter.com/sLHtDEWglQ
— Furkan Gözükara (@FurkanGozukara) March 25, 2026
“Mar-a-Lago’s state House district just flipped from red to blue, which should have Republicans worried about their chances this November,” Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee President Heather Williams said in a statement ,as reported by MS NOW. “A Trump +11 district in his own backyard shouldn’t be in play for Democrats, but tonight proves Republicans are vulnerable everywhere.”
Photo courtesy of an X screenshot.
