SACHA PFEIFFER, HOST:
To go even deeper into Tuesday's primary results, we've called Jessica Taylor. She's an editor at the Cook Political Report. It provides a nonpartisan, independent analysis of U.S. elections and campaigns. Good morning, Jessica, and welcome back to the show.
JESSICA TAYLOR: Good morning, Sacha.
PFEIFFER: So as we just heard NPR's Ashley Lopez talking about, the redistricting has had an impact on House races in Florida, and Florida is one of the states where Republicans redrew maps to pick up more seats. What can you tell us overall about whether those Republican redistricting efforts have been fruitful for them?
TAYLOR: Well, I think that it's sort of a mixed bag, as Ashley was talking about, you know, where Democrats were targeting one seat held by Cory Mills, who has quite a bit of scandal in his background. And had he hung on and been the nominee there, they felt a lot better about flipping that seat. We have the Moskowitz seat that is competitive.
So, you know, this is a place. It's - you know, it's a place where Republicans could offset the other seats that we expect them to lose in the country, where they have redrawn seats here in Texas and across the country, other states. But, you know, I think that there - Democrats also have some good candidates in places here as well. So it's possible that some of this redistricting may be an overreach as well.
PFEIFFER: You mentioned Cory Mills. He had been endorsed by President Trump. He still lost his race. He was the subject of a wave of allegations of various kinds. Now, your colleagues at the Cook Political Report had switched Florida's 7th District ranking from solidly red to likely red because of Cory Mills. Now that he's lost, do you see Democrats having much of a shot in that race, a better shot in that race?
TAYLOR: They have - would've had a better shot had he been the nominee again there, you know, that we were prepared to move it even further into Democrats' direction had Mills been the nominee. But I think right now Republicans are breathing a sigh of relief that they don't have Mills as the nominee there.
PFEIFFER: I also want to ask you about Florida's 20th Congressional District. There was a very bitter contest there that Ashley Lopez just told us about. Debbie Wasserman Schultz - who is white - won, despite that district having been represented by a Black lawmaker for more than three decades. For Debbie Wasserman Schultz going forward, how much of a challenge do you see this for her?
TAYLOR: I think she's going to have to improve her relationships with the Black caucus, certainly. I mean, she's the former DNC chairman, so she's been a very prominent member in her - in the Congress. And, you know, now she's going to, I think, have to repair some of the relationships, not just in Congress, but, you know, within localities there as well with Black leaders in Broward County as well.
PFEIFFER: So much attention this election season has gone to the Democratic Socialists of America Party and then its candidates. Florida has been often described as a pivotal test for democratic socialist candidates. And we saw DSA member Angie Nixon win her Senate primary in Florida. What does Angie Nixon's win tell you about the state of progressive politics in Florida and the DSA's standing in that state?
TAYLOR: You know, Nixon has been, as Ashley mentioned there, she's been a longtime member. She really kind of drew attention when this redistricting was being passed. She took a bullhorn to the state House floor and was protesting it. And so I think that she came across as sort of more of a fighter than Vindman, which is interesting because Vindman was positioning himself. I think that that's what it boils down to, who is a bigger fighter? And I think her sort of fighting was more recent.
And Vindman, of course, you know, became such a national figure during impeachment. And, you know, I think that people want people that are going to stand up to Trump 2.0 and not just Trump 1.0 because we've seen some other members that were prominent during Trump's first term. Diana DeGette was a member - was a leading member in the - in impeaching Trump, prosecutor in the House. She lost to a DSA candidate. Dan Goldman was another member who was one of the attorneys in there.
So then Vindman, you know, he was sort of a resistance-era figure, and that helped him to fundraise. But he also, I think, made a lot of missteps in that campaign that he looked past Nixon's challenge that she had progressive support in the ground as well.
PFEIFFER: And I want to ask you one question about the other side of the country, deep red Wyoming. In that state, a Trump-endorsed candidate lost in the GOP primary for governor. What does that tell us, if anything, about the power of President Trump's endorsements these days?
TAYLOR: I think we're seeing it particularly wane in gubernatorial contests. Some of his favored candidates have also lost races in Iowa, in South Carolina and in Georgia. Candidates for governor, I think they - people look at the candidates more than the - you know, who's endorsed them sometimes. And so people feel more of a connection with their candidates for governor. They see more of an influence on their everyday lives. And so it's really telling to me that Trump's power is waning, at least when it comes to these gubernatorial candidates in primaries.
PFEIFFER: That is Jessica Taylor of the Cook Political Report. Thank you, Jessica.
TAYLOR: Thank you, Sacha. Transcript provided by NPR, Copyright NPR.
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