Longtime incumbent Rep. Lois Frankel has successfully defended her seat in the newly redrawn Democratic Primary for Florida's 23rd Congressional District.
The 78-year-old congresswoman defeated progressive challenger Victoria Doyle, 60, and candidate Mark Piper in Tuesday's primary.
The Associated Press called the race in Frankel's favor less than an hour after polls closed.
Frankel, who previously represented Florida's 22nd Congressional District, ran in Florida's 23rd Congressional District after Gov. Ron DeSantis and Republicans reconfigured the congressional maps statewide.
The new district boundaries are similar to the old district.
Frankel will face Republican primary winner Deborah Adeimy who easily beat Paola Branda.
READ MORE: In redrawn FL-23, incumbent Rep. Lois Frankel battles political outsider Victoria Doyle
The non-partisan Cook Political Report rates the new 23rd district as more favorable to a Democratic candidate than a Republican. The newly redrawn 23rd district now sits entirely within Palm Beach County,
Frankel's former 22nd District seat now leans more Republican.
Despite facing a strong, grassroots movement from Doyle, who campaigned heavily on universal healthcare and zero corporate PAC money, Frankel's 14-year record in Congress proved too strong.
It was a high stakes proxy race: while both candidates align under the Democratic banner, distinct political differences separate their approaches to legislative pragmatism, economic policy, corporate influence, and foreign affairs that often seep into local politics.
Frankel, who remains a founding member of the Medicare for All caucus, emphasizes what she deems as a more pragmatic approach to providing better access to healthcare, arguing that every individual deserves a "dignified life" with access to medical care.
"I have to live not only in the future, but in the here and now," Frankel told WLRN, prior to her win. "The here and now is whatever we can carve together to get access that we can get bipartisan support."
Frankel highlighted key legislative wins from the Inflation Reduction Act, such as capping insulin at $35 a month and prescription out-of-pocket costs at $2,000.
"I believe that everybody should have access to healthcare. Everybody. And I am open to any, really, reasonable way to get there," she added.
In contrast, Doyle was pushing for a $25 minimum wage. And single-payer universal health coverage that replaces private insurance industries with one public agency that pays all medical bills using tax funds.
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