The non-partisan Cook Political Report says Florida's 22nd congressional district race is now a toss up.
"Marine veteran Casey Askar won the GOP primary for this redrawn open seat, which stretches from Palm Beach County to the Gulf Coast and voted for Trump by 11 points," the Cook Political Report analysts write. "He should have the edge against Democrats’ nominee, education policy expert Pia Dandiya, but this will be a highly competitive race."
Dandiya and Askar are competing for a newly drawn congressional district that covers four counties — Palm Beach, Broward, Hendry and Collier. It includes the cities of Wellington and Parkland, then sprawls further west into the rural Hendry and southern Collier County to include Marco Island.
READ MORE: Battle lines drawn in Florida’s 22nd congressional district race over Affordable Care Act
Before the shift to being a toss up, the Cook Political Report rated the district as "leans Republican," meaning it favors a GOP candidate. The new district went 55-44% for Trump in 2024, but tilted 51-48% for Biden in 2020.
Local and national Democratic officials pounced on the news.
The Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee, in a statement, said the high cost of living under President Trump and the mass deportation of undocumented immigrants carried out by Trump are driving away voters, especially Latino voters, from the GOP. Latino voters comprise about one-third of all Hispanics.
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Learn more about Democratic congressional candidate Pia Dandiya here.
Learn more about Republican congressional candidate Casey Askar here.
