Thirty-five Senate seats are up for grabs in total in the 2022 midterm elections, but under a third are expected to be close.
Florida was once considered the perennial battleground state, going for President Bill Clinton in 1992 and 1996, then President George W. Bush in 2000 and 2004 and former President Barack Obama in 2008 and 2012. But it has become more Republican-leaning in recent years, having gone for President Donald Trump in 2016 and 2020.
Three-term Democratic Rep. Val Demings was seen as a formidable candidate, and established herself earlier this summer as a strong fundraiser who has brought in more cash than two-term Sen. Marco Rubio. She gained national prominence as both one of the House impeachment managers in former President Trump's 2020 Senate trial and as one of the women considered by President Biden as a potential vice presidential nominee.
But Rubio is still the favorite in November and while Demings controlled the airwaves in the months leading up to the state's August 23 primaries, the two sides have seen even spending since then . The"Florida First Project," a group that supported Rubio's unsuccessful 2016 presidential run, has also spent $1.3 million on ads to attack Demings and portray her as too close to House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
In their only debate, the two had emotional exchanges about abortion limits, assault weapon legislation and the value of the American Rescue Plan. Rubio has said he personally opposes abortion in all cases but pushed back on attacks by Demings by saying that every piece of legislation he has endorsed has exceptions, including Sen. Lindsey Graham's federal 15-week abortion ban that he co-sponsors. In turn, he accuses Demings of supporting taxpayer funding up until the moment of birth.
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