Florida Democrats Can’t Even Win Over Themselves

State party Chair Nikki Fried moved to oust county chairs in pursuit of getting Democrats “back on track.” As critics accuse her of vindictiveness, the blowback is rattling insiders’ faith the party can do that by November.

Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried

Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried moved to oust several local party chairs. Lynne Sladky/AP

Florida Democratic Chair Nikki Fried says her recent move to oust local party chairs is part of a bigger vision to get the party back on track for November. Some Democratic insiders see it as a personal vendetta fueled by her own ambition for the governor’s mansion.

During a grueling, nearly seven-hour party leadership call Sunday, the state party upheld two of Fried’s three proposed suspensions, pushing out the party chair in Miami-Dade, one of the state’s largest and most significant counties in the 2024 election cycle.

The showdown punctuated Florida Democrats’ existential plight going into this presidential election cycle. The Democratic Party is grappling with how to build back power in a state where it hasn’t won a statewide election in six years, has no statewide cabinet officials, has a Republican supermajority drawing the voting maps and is trailing Republicans by almost a million registered voters.