Democrat flips seat in Trump district, home to his Mar-a-Lago resort

Democrat Emily Gregory reacts to winning a Florida special election, flipping a state legislative district that includes Trump’s Mar-a-Lago estate.

Democrat Emily Gregory won a Florida special election on Tuesday, flipping a state legislative district that is home to Mar-a-Lago, the Palm Beach estate that U.S. President Donald Trump counts as his residence.

The president had endorsed Gregory’s rival, Jon Maples. In a social media post Monday, he urged voters to turn out, saying Maples was backed “by so many of my Palm Beach County friends.”

Democrats celebrated the victory as the latest sign voters are turning against Trump and Republicans ahead of the midterm elections in November. Tuesday was the latest in a series of lopsided or improbable victories in special elections across the country since Trump returned to the White House more than a year ago.

The district was previously represented by Mike Caruso, a Republican who resigned to become Palm Beach County’s clerk. Caruso won by 19 percentage points in 2024.

“If Mar-a-Lago is vulnerable, imagine what’s possible this November,” said Heather Williams, president of the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee. She said Tuesday’s race was the 29th seat that Democrats have flipped from Republican control since Trump took office.

“Gas prices are spiking, grocery costs are up, and families can’t get by — it’s clear voters at the polls are fed up with Republicans,” Williams said.

With almost all votes counted, Gregory led by 2.4 percentage points, or 797 votes.

Gregory grew up north of Palm Beach in Stuart. She’s the owner of a fitness company that works with pregnant and postpartum women, and she has never run for elected office before.

Speaking to MSNOW after her victory, she said she was “pretty shocked” and “having a fairly out-of-body experience.”

Democrats have notched some notable wins in Republican-controlled Florida. In December, Eileen Higgins won the race for Miami mayor, the first time a Democrat had led the city in nearly three decades. She defeated a Trump-endorsed Republican in a campaign that leaned heavily into criticism of the president’s immigration crackdown, a message that resonated with the city’s large Hispanic population.

Farther west in Texas, Democrat Taylor Rehmet flipped a reliably Republican state Senate district in a special election in January.

Trump immediately distanced himself from the loss in a district he’d won by 17 points in 2024, saying “I’m not involved in that” even though he had endorsed the Republican candidate.

The Texas race energized Democrats desperate for signs of momentum after being locked out of power in Washington.

But winning in Trump’s backyard left them especially ebullient.

“Donald Trump’s own neighbors just sent a crystal clear message: They are furious and ready for change,” said Democratic National Committee Chair Ken Martin.

Trump voted by mail in the Tuesday election and his ballot was counted, Palm Beach County voter records show. He chose a mail ballot despite publicly bashing the voting method as a source of fraud and pushing Congress to curtail the practice.

Trump was a New Yorker for most of his life but switched his personal residence and voter registration to Florida during his first term. Mar-a-Lago has become a gathering place for Trump’s friends and allies, as well as business executives and foreign leaders looking to curry favor with him. He spends many weekends there as president.

Jonathan J. Cooper, The Associated Press