First Gen Z member elected to Congress

Democratic nominee Maxwell Frost is projected to win election in Florida’s 10th Congressional District, becoming the first Generation Z member in Congress.

The Associated Press called the race soon after polls closed in Florida on Tuesday.

Frost, 25, takes the seat vacated by Rep. Val Demings (D), who launched a Senate bid in Florida.

After the race was called, Frost, an Uber driver, wrote on Twitter that “history was made tonight.”

“We made history for Floridians, for Gen Z, and for everyone who believes we deserve a better future,” the Democratic nominee tweeted. “I am beyond thankful for the opportunity to represent my home in the United States Congress.”

Frost stunned the Democratic establishment with his primary win — coming seemingly out of nowhere to best a wide field packed with senior political figures.

Frost ran in a largely blue district against Republican Calvin Wimbish, a retired U.S. Army Green Beret who expressed hard-line views on abortion and immigration.

Frost, who is African American and Cuban, has a long history as a progressive activist for civil rights and gun control. 

In 2018, advocated to restore voting rights to Floridians with felony convictions, assisting a historic effort from the American Civil Liberties Union.

Frost campaigned on a number of progressive policies, including what he called “reimagining justice” through ending mass incarceration, demilitarizing the police and abolishing the death penalty.

—Updated at 8:44 p.m.