Two close allies of President Trump allies won Republican primaries Tuesday in deep-red Florida congressional seats left vacant when Rep. Matt Gaetz and Rep. Mike Waltz resigned. The wins put MAGA loyalists Jimmy Patronis and Randy Fine on glide paths to Congress when they take on little-known Democratic opponents in special general elections on April 1. Their arrival on Capitol Hill will be welcomed by House Speaker Mike Johnson whose GOP caucus now holds a narrow three-seat majority that complicates passing key planks of Trump’s agenda. Patronis, the state’s chief...

Florida’s Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis (R) was projected to win the Republican primary in the state’s first congressional district, making him a favorite to win the general election in April, according to Decision Desk HQ. Patronis is running to replace former Rep. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.), who resigned from Congress. The congressional district is one of the most conservative in the state. Gaetz easily won reelection in November, carrying 66 percent of the vote. The district, which is located in the state’s western panhandle, includes Escambia, Okaloosa, Santa Rosa, and...

Neither Republican lives in their district, but that didn’t seem to blunt their path to primary victory. Patronis, whose family runs a famed restaurant in Panama City, has been a mainstay in Panhandle politics who spent time in the Florida Legislature before then-Gov. Rick Scott appointed him to his state post. Patronis subsequently won two statewide elections and had been mulling a run for governor before jumping into the race for Congress. Gaetz, who easily won a fifth term last November, stepped down after Trump picked him to be attorney...

Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis will be the Republican nominee in a Special Election to replace U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz. The Panama City Republican emerged as the top vote-getter in a 10-candidate field running in a Special Primary held Tuesday in Florida’s 1st Congressional District. Early election results show Patronis winning greater than 62% of the vote. He defeated former Escambia County Commissioner Gene Valentino, former state Rep. Joel Rudman and Aaron Dimmock, Gaetz’s Primary opponent last cycle.