Florida's primary election is weeks away, and one of the races involves the U.S. Senate seat filled by Ashley Moody, the former state attorney general appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis after Marco Rubio was confirmed as Secretary of State.
The winner of the special election will serve the last two years of Rubio's term.
On the Republican side, Moody will face off against former Army veteran Chris Gleason, physician Dr. Neelam Taneja Perry and the Rev. Ernest "Ernie" Rivera in the primary.
On "The Florida Roundup," we heard from the two Democrats hoping to be their party's nominee following the Aug. 18 primary.
Rep. Angie Nixon of Jacksonville represents House District 13, which covers much of Duval County west and north of the St. Johns River. She was first elected in 2022, and reelected in 2024.
Alex Vindman is a retired Army lieutenant colonel, whose 21 years in the military concluded with an appointment as director of European Affairs on the National Security Council. He was a witness in President Donald Trump's first impeachment trial.
From affordability to the Iran War and more, here's what the two candidates had to say.
How would they address affordability Florida?
A recent University of North Florida poll reported half of Floridians say the cost of living is the most important problem facing the state. When asked how she would address the issue if elected to the Senate, Nixon said on day one she plans to file a bill to reinstate Affordable Care Act healthcare subsidies. She wants to force insurance companies to bring down high premium costs.
"The incentives would be to extend those subsidies. No. 1, they jacked up the premiums because the subsidies failed to extend. And so looking at that, right? I'm going to make a hard-core push toward Medicare for All," a proposal to expand the federal insurance program for seniors to every American. "But of course, we have to do things incrementally, and extending the ACA subsidy would be a help," Nixon told host Tom Hudson.
She added that she also wants to repeal the "One Big Beautiful Bill Act," Trump's 2025 tax-and-spending law.
"It gave those tax breaks to those billionaires and to the ultra-rich, and we need to make sure they pay what they owe to help us with our Medicare for All," she said.
She added that her priority is "making it easier for everyday hardworking people and families to get ahead."
Vindman said people across the political spectrum are experiencing an "affordability crisis."
"People are fleeing the state, or just simply struggling. It's a desert for young people in their 20s," Vindman told Hudson.
ALSO READ: Moody leads Nixon by 8 points, Vindman by 10, in new poll of Senate race
On his website, Vindman said he wants to strengthen Medicare by supporting legislation that will add dental and eye coverage. He also wants to work to lower drug prices and expand access to quality, affordable care.
But on "The Florida Roundup," he mentioned home insurance as a big issue when it comes to the cost of living. He said the state and the federal government play a role in it. Vindman added that although there is a national flood insurance program, he has a different idea for it.
"This is focused on home backstopping for natural disaster, and that the theory here is that the insurance companies will still pay their first dollar, but if there is a massive loss, this doesn't bankrupt the insurance companies or make their business insolvent," he said. "And I'm frankly less concerned about the insurance companies and more concerned about keeping them here, where they could compete against each other and drive down costs. This is very much focused on a cost agenda."
Views on the Iran war
NPR reported last Thursday that the U.S. House approved a resolution to remove American forces from Iran. This is not legally binding and serves more as a symbolic rebuke against the president. Shortly after, Senate Democrats tried to advance a resolution of their own, but it failed 47-49.
Vindman said that as a longtime veteran and Purple Heart recipient, he does not support the war.
"I think it's a foolish and dangerous war," he told Hudson. "I understand the real cost of war, and it's not just dollars and cents. It's our real treasure. It's our American soldiers."
ALSO READ: For a 2nd time, House approves resolution to end the war in Iran in a rebuke to Trump
If he is elected and the war is still going on, he wants to conduct hearings to understand the circumstances.
"I wouldn't look backward, although I have lots of questions about why we're in this war," he said. "I'd look forward about our way out that keeps our country safe, advances our national security."
He wants to ask Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth about how he's conducting the war. He also wants to understand the objectives.
"Right now, it's unclear. The theory was very quick regime change. That's not going to happen," he said. "Punishing the regime sufficiently where they capitulate is not going to happen. They are now in control of some key terrain, and that's driving up prices for Americans here thousands and thousands of miles away."
When Nixon was asked about the war, she also mentioned scrutinizing the situation and reassessing how to get troops home safely.
She added that the current situation is "destroying lives" and that people's priorities are "displaced." She said there are active duty military on food stamps and veterans who are living on the streets. She also said that she's heard security advisers warned against the U.S. going into the war in the first place.
"What I support is us looking at ways in which we can be more diplomatic and using a fine-tooth comb as it relates to any type of military spending," Nixon added.
Primary wins by Democratic Socialists of America candidates
Nixon said she is a member of the Democratic Socialists of America, along with several other organizations like the Working Families Party.
"I'm a member of a union, and I'm a member of any organization that looks toward ensuring that people's quality of life [is] improved," she said. "I believe that hardworking, everyday people deserve the opportunity to shape their community as well as their economies, and those are the things that all of the organizations I am part of believe."
She said the recent primary election wins by DSA candidates across the country show that people are "tired of status quo establishment political pandering."
Nixon said she believes people want candidates who are willing to debate, go to meetings and don't run away from uncomfortable questions.
"People want someone that's really going to speak to their issues. Folks are ready for Medicare for All. They're clamoring for free childcare, and they are tired of people ... saying, 'Oh, we'll get to it. We'll get to it later."
She said she supports the DSA when it comes to fighting against racism, antisemitism and Islamophobia.
The organization's platform also includes a position to abolish the U.S. Senate. Nixon said she doesn't always agree with everything the organizations she's part of say, but said she'd look into it.
On the other hand, Vindman said he does not believe Floridians are interested in that "brand of politics." He thinks that those candidates resonate in urban pockets like New York City.
Instead, he said they're interested in candidates with a track record.
"In my case, I'm again a 21-year combat veteran, served as a diplomat, served in the Pentagon and the White House on the National Security Council. A track record of delivering on some of the biggest challenges we face," he said. "And frankly, somebody that's going to be thoughtful and pragmatic — fighting the fights that need to be fought, and then also recognizing that in order to get anything done, we need to end the dysfunction and make sure that bipartisanship is not an option; it's a necessity."
This story was compiled from interviews conducted by Tom Hudson for "The Florida Roundup."
