Lobbyist David Jolly won the Republican primary for the special election in Florida’s 13th District. Jolly won with about 45% of the vote and 100% of the results in. State Rep. Kathleen Peters came in second and Mark Bircher came in third.
There was an attempt by several of the House GOP women to win the election for Rep. Peters in order to add to their numbers.
On the Democratic side, the state’s Chief Financial Officer, Alex Sink, won largely unopposed.
Sink will face Jolly on March 11, 2014.
The special election was caused by the death of Rep. C.W. Bill Young (R).
The race is currently seen as a toss-up and an indicator of what could come in the midterm elections later this year. The year’s first competitive, major election could serve as a marketing tool for the parties as they decide on policy messaging for this year.