FL-SD03: Corey Simon (R) tries to defend his Senate seat against Democrat Daryl Parks

Republican Sen. Corey Simon’s bid for reelection against Democrat Daryl Parks could solidify the GOP’s hold over a North Florida district that was once a stronghold for Democrats.

But Parks, a civil rights attorney, is not letting the former NFL player skate by to victory. As early voting started on Monday, Parks joined Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried in Tallahassee to advance his candidacy. He also plans to conduct “souls to the polls” events targeting churches.

Although Democrats outnumber Republicans in Senate District 3, which encompasses 13 counties in the Panhandle and Big Bend, Simon proved in 2022 that an advantage in registered voters alone wasn’t enough to defend the seat. Half of the Senate is up for reelection in November, but this is the only seat that Dems are targeting to gain more power in the chamber, where 12 of 40 lawmakers are Democrats.

Nearly 31,000 Floridians in the district have voted via mail, with Democrats making up 54% of those votes, according to the Florida Division of Elections. That advantage of more than 6,000 ballots could disappear as early voting started on Monday in eight counties within the district, with 46% of the votes as of Tuesday morning from Republicans, according to the division of elections. In 2022, 48% of early votes came from Republicans.



https://floridaphoenix.com/2024/10/22/florida-senate-race-corey-simon-daryl-parks/