Republican Michael Waltz defeated Democrat Nancy Soderberg in the race to succeed former Rep. Ron DeSantis (R-Fla.) in Florida’s 6th District on Tuesday.
Waltz’s victory secures a House seat that Republicans had hoped to lock down after DeSantis announced last year that he would not seek reelection and would instead run for the governor’s mansion.
Public polls in the race were scarce, but a survey released in September by St. Pete Polls showed Waltz, a retired Green Beret, with a 5-point lead over Soderberg, a former official on the National Security Council under former President Clinton.{mosads}
The Cook Political Report put the race in the “Lean Republican” column.
DeSantis represented the North Central Florida district until September, when the three-term Republican resigned to focus on his bid for Florida governor.