“Deutch Wins Dem Primary In Florida 19, Will Be Next Congressman”, reads the headline from NPR this morning. Indeed, the Deutch for Congress campaign is very confident this morning. Deutch won the Democratic nomination yesterday with the support of a large majority of Democratic primary voters, in a district where Democratic voters are in a strong majority in general. Furthermore, the Republican primary race was very close, with Ed Lynch barely edging out rival Joe Budd. A primary that close could lead to ongoing division among Republicans in the general election.
However, turnout for the primary election in Florida’s 19th congressional district was extremely low, so it would be a mistake to assume that the primary results will predict general election results. There was another special election not too long ago for which people made sure predictions of victory for the winner of the Democratic primary. People were certain that once Martha Coakley had wrapped up the Democratic nomination, that was that, and she would soon be in the U.S. Senate.
Let’s not make the same mistake with Florida’s 19th district race. We can’t know what will happen over the next few weeks. The district’s next U.S. Representative will be chosen when the general election is done.
