Florida House
Filing Deadline: June 20, 2008 • Primary Date: Aug. 26, 2008 • General Election: Nov. 4, 2008District Profile: With the most military veterans of any district in the nation, the 1st is strongly Republican. It voted 72 percent for Bush in 2004. Full Profile
2006 results: Jeff Miller (R) defeated Joe Roberts (D) by 69-31%.
Incumbent
Jeff Miller (R)
Elected in Oct. 2001; Seeking fourth full term; Miller was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: Historically, this was Democratic country, Jeffersonian and segregationist. Today, it is still mostly Democratic, though for different reasons. Full Profile
2006 results: Allen Boyd (D) ran unopposed.
Incumbent
Allen Boyd (D)
Elected in 1996; Seeking seventh term; Boyd was unopposed in the primary.
Challengers
Mark Mulligan (R)Mulligan, a businessman, was nominated with 68% in a two-way primary.
District Profile: The district was created in 1992 to be north Florida's black majority seat. It was designed to shift as many Dems as possible to the 3rd to boost Republicans elsewhere. Full Profile
2006 results: Corrine Brown (D) ran unopposed.
Incumbent
Corrine Brown (D)
Elected in 1992; Seeking ninth term; Brown was unopposed in the primary.
Challengers
None
District Profile: The boosterish Jacksonville civic culture and significant military presence make the 4th a pro-business, pro-military and pro-Republican district. Full Profile
2006 results: Ander Crenshaw (R) defeated Bob Harms (D) by 70-30%.
Incumbent
Ander Crenshaw (R)
Elected in 2000; Seeking fifth term; Crenshaw was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: The district has 251,000 Social Security recipients, more than any other district in the country. Politically, this is marginal territory. Full Profile
2006 results: Ginny Brown-Waite (R) defeated John Russell (D) by 60-40%.
Incumbent
Ginny Brown-Waite (R)
Elected in 2002; Seeking fourth term; Brown-Waite was nominated with 80% in a two-way primary.
Challengers
John Russell (D)Russell, a nurse, was nominated with 51% in a three-way primary.
District Profile: On balance, this is a Republican district. The Gainesville area is the exception: Alachua is one of the few Florida counties to regularly vote Democratic. Full Profile
2006 results: Cliff Stearns (R) defeated David Bruderly (D) by 60-40%.
Incumbent
Cliff Stearns (R)
Elected in 1988; Seeking 11th term; Stearns was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: Some of the communities here are old: John D. Rockefeller used to winter in Ormond Beach, and cars have been zooming on Daytona's rock-hard beach for decades. Full Profile
2006 results: John Mica (R) defeated John Chagnon (D) by 63-37%.
Incumbent
John Mica (R)
Elected in 1992; Seeking ninth term; Mica was unopposed in the primary.
Challengers
Faye Armitage (D)Armitage, an economist, was nominated with 64% in a two-way primary.
District Profile: The 8th includes parts of Orlando and surrounding Orange County and most of the Walt Disney World complex, including the Disney town of Celebration. Full Profile
2006 results: Ric Keller (R) defeated Charlie Stuart (D) by 53-46%.
Incumbent
Ric Keller (R)Elected in 2000; Seeking fifth term; Keller was nominated with 53% in a five-way primary.
Challengers
Alan Grayson (D)
Grayson, an attorney, was nominated with 49% in a two-way primary.
District Profile: The 9th District's borders were drawn by Republican redistricters; it now covers part of the area north of St. Petersburg and north and east of Tampa. Full Profile
2006 results: Gus Bilirakis (R) defeated Phyllis Busansky (D) by 56-44%.
Incumbent
Gus Bilirakis (R)
Elected in 2006; Seeking second term; Bilirakis was unopposed in the primary.
Challengers
Bill Mitchell (D)Mitchell, an attorney, was nominated with 37% in a three-way primary.
District Profile: The 10th is the only Florida district entirely within one county. It includes all of Pinellas County except for heavily black precincts in south St. Petersburg. Full Profile
2006 results: Bill Young (R) defeated Samm Simpson (D) by 66-34%.
Incumbent
Bill Young (R)
Elected in 1970; Seeking 20th term; Young was unopposed in the primary.
Challengers
Bob Hackworth (DHackwork, the Dunedin mayor, was nominated with 47% in a three-way primary.
District Profile: The 11th is the most heavily minority district in Florida outside the Gold Coast and the Jacksonville-to-Orlando 3rd District. Full Profile
2006 results: Kathy Castor (D) defeated Eddie Adams Jr. (R) by 70-30%.
Incumbent
Kathy Castor (D)
Elected in 2006; Seeking second term; Castor was unopposed in the primary.
Challengers
Eddie Adams Jr. (R)Adams, an architect, was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: There are more registered Democrats than Republicans, but Polk County, like most of the Deep South, increasingly votes Republican. Full Profile
2006 results: Adam Putnam (R) defeated Joe Viscusi (I) and Ed Bowlin (I) by 69% to 20% and 11%, respectively.
Incumbent
Adam Putnam (R)
Elected in 2000; Seeking fifth term; Putnam was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: Though some high-tech firms diversify the economy, this remains a place of tourists and well-off retirees. George W. Bush carried this district, but with 56 percent in 2004. Full Profile
2006 results: Vern Buchanan (R) defeated Christine Jennings (D) by 369 votes.
Incumbent
Vern Buchanan (R)
Elected in 2006; Seeking second term; Buchanan was unopposed in the primary.
Challengers
Christine Jennings (D)Jennings, a banker, was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: In a state where G0P registration rates often understate Republican voting strength, the 14th District counts 50 percent of its electorate as registered Republicans. Full Profile
2006 results: Connie Mack (R) defeated Robert Neeld (D) by 64-36%.
Incumbent
Connie Mack (R)
Elected in 2004; Seeking third term; Mack was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: The 15th includes much (but not all) of the Space Coast. Its northern end is at Cape Canaveral itself, but most of the Space Center facilities are in the 24th District. Full Profile
2006 results: Dave Weldon (R) defeated Bob Bowman (D) by 56-44%.
Republicans
Bill Posey
Posey, a state senator, was nominated with 77% in a three-way primary.
Democrats
Steve BlytheBlythe, a physician, was nominated with 66% of the vote in a two-way primary.
District Profile: In 2000, before redistricting, 44 percent of the 16th's vote was cast in Palm Beach County; after redistricting, just 15 percent was cast there. Full Profile
2006 results: Tim Mahoney (D) defeated Mark Foley (R) by 50-48%. Every vote cast for Foley was counted for Joe Negron (R).
Incumbent
Tim Mahoney (D)Elected in 2006; Seeking second term; Mahoney was unopposed in the primary.
Challengers
Tom Rooney (R)
Rooney, an attorney, was nominated with 37% in a three-way primary.
District Profile: Some 55 percent of the 17th's residents are black, the highest percentage of any Florida district, which explains why it has the lowest number of registered Republicans. Full Profile
2006 results: Kendrick Meek (D) was unopposed.
Incumbent
Kendrick Meek (D)
Elected in 2002; Seeking fourth term; Meek was unopposed in the primary.
Challengers
None
District Profile: The 18th is one of Miami-Dade's three Latino-majority districts. The district includes most of the city of Miami, which is home to only 16 percent of the county's residents. Full Profile
2006 results: Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R) defeated Dave Patlak (D) by 62-38%.
Incumbent
Ileana Ros-Lehtinen (R)
Elected in Aug. 1989; Seeking 10th full term; Ros-Lehtinen was unopposed in the primary.
Challengers
Annette Taddeo (D)Taddeo, a businesswoman, was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: The boundaries of the 19th District are uneven and irregular, obviously drawn with an eye to political advantage for the Republicans. Full Profile
2006 results: Robert Wexler (D) was unopposed.
Incumbent
Robert Wexler (D)
Elected in 1996; Seeking seventh term; Wexler was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: Precinct by precinct, its computer-generated borders are drawn to include heavily Democratic and Jewish areas as well as a large gay and lesbian community. Full Profile
2006 results: Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D) was unopposed.
Incumbent
Debbie Wasserman Schultz (D)
Elected in 2004; Seeking third term; Wasserman Schultz was unopposed in the primary.
Challengers
None
District Profile: Overall, this is a Republican district, but one that sometimes votes for Democrats who support the Cuban community. Full Profile
2006 results: Lincoln Diaz-Balart (R) defeated Frank Gonzalez (D) by 59-41%.
Incumbent
Lincoln Diaz-Balart (R)
Elected in 1992; Seeking ninth term; Diaz-Balart was unopposed in the primary.
Challengers
Raul Martinez (D)Martinez, the former Hialeah mayor, was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: A testament to the advances made in redistricting software, the 22nd was drawn by Republican redistricters to provide a safe seat for their party. Full Profile
2006 results: Ron Klein (D) defeated Clay Shaw (R) by 51-47%.
Incumbent
Ron Klein (D)
Elected in 2006; Seeking second term; Klein was nominated with 85% in a two-way primary.
Challengers
Allen West (R)West, a retired Army officer, was unopposed in the primary.
District Profile: The 23rd gathers together South Florida's black neighborhoods in a geographically contrived but demographically coherent constituency. Full Profile
2006 results: Alcee Hastings (D) was unopposed.
Incumbent
Alcee Hastings (D)
Elected in 1992; Seeking ninth term; Hastinga was nominated with 88% in a two-way primary.
Challengers
Marion Thorpe Jr. (R)Thorpe, a physician, was unoppoesd in the primary.
District Profile: This is as close as Florida gets to a typical suburban district: There are higher than average numbers of homeowners, families with children and white-collar employees. Full Profile
2006 results: Tom Feeney (R) defeated Clint Curtis (D) by 58-42%.
Incumbent
Tom Feeney (R)Elected in 2002; Seeking fourth term; Feeney was nominated with 77% in a two-way primary.
Challengers
Suzanne Kosmas (D)
Kosmas, a former state representative, was nominated with 72% in a two-way primary.
District Profile: The 25th sprawls almost all the way across this uninhabitable portion of South Florida, connecting population centers near (but not on) each of Florida's two coasts. Full Profile
2006 results: Mario Diaz-Balart (R) defeated Michael Calderin (D) by 58-42%.
Incumbent
Mario Diaz-Balart (R)
Elected in 2002; Seeking fourth term; Diaz-Balart was unopposed in the primary.
Challengers
Joe Garcia (D)Garcia, a political consultant, was unopposed in the primary.
Please send comments or corrections to AlmanacEditorial@nationaljournal.com.
Race Rankings
Based on likelihood of seat switching party control
1.
N.Y.-13
(Open-R)2.
N.Y.-25
(Open-R)3.
Ariz.-01
(Open-R)4.
Va.-11
(Open-R)5.
Fla.-16
(Mahoney-D)6.
Ill.-11
(Open-R)7.
Ohio-16
(Open-R)8.
Texas-22
(Lampson-D)9.
Alaska-AL
(Young-R)10.
Fla.-24
(Feeney-R)11.
N.J.-03
(Open-R)12.
Colo.-04
(Musgrave-R)13.
Mich.-09
(Knollenberg-R)14.
N.J.-07
(Open-R)15.
Minn.-06
(Bachmann-R)Previous Coverage
Check out National Journal's coverage of previous Florida house races.
