Democrat Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick wins Florida special election to succeed Alcee Hastings

Democrat Sheila Cherfilus-McCormick won the special election on Tuesday to succeed the late Rep. Alcee Hastings (D-Fla.) in Florida’s 20th Congressional District. 

The Associated Press called the race for Cherfilus-McCormick at 7:08 p.m. ET.

Florida’s 20th District, which encompasses parts of Palm Beach and Broward counties, leans heavily Democratic, and Cherfilus-McCormick was the heavy favorite heading into the Tuesday election. She faced off against Republican Jason Mariner, Libertarian Mike ter Maat and independents Leonard Serratore and Jim Flynn. 

Hastings represented the area for decades until his death from pancreatic cancer in April. 

Cherfilus-McCormick challenged Hastings in the primaries in both 2018 and 2020 before announcing a bid for his now-open seat last year. 

She emerged from a crowded field of Democrats in a November primary after beating her closest rival, Broward County Commissioner Dale Holness, by a scant five votes. 

Holness has sued to overturn the results of the primary, arguing that Cherfilus-McCormick is ineligible to hold office because she failed to file necessary financial disclosures and accusing her of effectively bribing voters by promising to support $1,000 monthly stimulus payments for adults with annual household incomes of less than $75,000 a year.