Gantt upsets incumbent James Bush III in state House District 109

The results were mixed Tuesday in two of the most closely watched state House races in Miami-Dade County, as incumbent Democratic state Rep. Dotie Joseph soundly defeated for the third time rival Roy Hardemon while newcomer Ashley Gantt narrowly beat incumbent state Rep. James Bush, Democrat from Opa-locka.

Gantt, a 37-year-old attorney and former Miami-Dade teacher, exploited Bush’s decisions to vote with Republicans on several controversial bills, even appearing with Gov. Ron DeSantis at press conferences to support a 15-week abortion ban and the Parental Rights in Education law, which was dubbed the “don’t say gay” bill by its critics.

Bush, 67, a retired teacher, was serving his third stint in the Florida House, having previously been elected in the ‘90s and 2000s. He came under fire from Democratic leaders, including Miami Sen. Jason Pizzo for not “leveraging his relationship” with DeSantis to help his community.

Bush shot back, saying the criticism reminded him of “Jim Crow-ism” and he mounted support from members of local Black churches, community activists and former Broward County Commissioner Barbara Sharief.

But Gantt had about a 450-vote margin of victory over Bush with all precincts reporting.

Bush’s defeat was one of the few surprises of the evening as dozens of hard-fought primaries came to a close in South Florida. Here’s a rundown of the top races:

House District 108: Incumbent Joseph wins

Joseph not only deflated Hardemon’s hopes of retaking House District 108, which he won in 2016 and which Joseph snatched from him in 2018, the other Democrat in the race, Michael Etienne, a former North Miami city clerk, also performed better than Hardemon. Joseph, 42-year-old attorney, earned 53% of the vote while Etienne captured 26% and Hardemon, who first mounted a rematch against Joseph in 2020, earned only 20%.

Joseph has no general election challenge and will return to Tallahassee to represent the district, which stretches from Wynwood to Biscayne Gardens.

House District 101: Cassel wins in Broward

Hillary Cassel, a 41-year-old lawyer from Dania Beach, edged out Todd Delmay and Clay Miller in the Democratic primary to replace retiring state Rep. Evan Jenne.

Cassel won about 40% of the vote to Delmay’s 34% and Miller’s 25%. She next will face Republican Guy Silla in November to represent in the district that includes parts of Hollywood, Dania Beach, Hallandale Beach and Davie.

House District 97: Dunkley wins in Broward

In the winner-take-all race among three newcomers, Lisa Dunkley defeated Kelly Nathaniel-Leroy Scurry and Saima Farooqui in the Democratic-dominated district that covers parts of Lauderhill, Lauderdale Lakes, Plantation and North Lauderdale.

Dunkley, 49, an Army veteran, captured 62% of the vote to Scurry’s 23% while Farooqui received 15%. The open primary allows Dunkley to head to Tallahassee with no general election challenge.

House District 98: Hawkins-Williams wins in Broward

Incumbent Democratic Rep. Patricia Hawkins-Williams defeated challenger Carmen Jones in the Central Broward District that stretches from Rock Island to the Palm Beach County line. Jones, 66, a community activist and commissioner of the Housing Authority of Pompano Beach received about 74% of the vote to Hawkins-Williams’ 26%.

The director and part owner of A Hero Child Placement Agency, a foster care agency, Hawkins-Williams, 56, will be returning to Tallahassee for a fourth and final term and faces no general election opposition.

House District 99: Campbell wins in Broward

Rep. Daryl Campbell will return to Tallahassee in November after defeating Elijah Manley with 71% of the vote in the district, which encompasses parts of Wilton Manors, Plantation, Lauderhill and Fort Lauderdale.

Campbell, 36, first won a special election in January to represent Florida House District 94, but his district was reconfigured during redistricting. A mental health specialist, Campbell defeated Manley, 23, a community organizer.

House District 105: Woodson wins in Broward

Incumbent Rep. Marie Woodson easily defeated challenger Imran Uddin Siddiqui, a 44-year-old doctor who lives in Miramar, in the Democratic-dominated district that encompasses parts of Miramar, Pembroke Pines, West Park and Hollywood.

Woodson, 62, won 83% of the vote to Uddin Siddiqui’s 16%. She will face Republican Vincent Parlatore in November.

House District 106: Basabe vs. Leonard in November

In the competitive open seat to represent much of Miami-Dade County’s coastline, Republican Fabián Basabe will face off in November against Democrat Jordan W. Leonard.

Basabe, 44, a former New York socialite and reality-TV star, won 38% of the vote to defeat Lynn Su Sutjapojnuku, 50, a finance expert, who had 35% of the vote, and Douglas Ross, 62, a Navy veteran and small business owner, who received 27% of the vote.

Leonard, 45, the former mayor of Bay Harbor Islands, won the Democratic primary with 74% of the vote against Gustavo Ortega, 42, who teaches children with special needs at Biscayne Beach Elementary.

House District 107: Benjamin vs. NPA candidate

Incumbent Rep. Christopher Benjamin, a 49-year-old attorney from Miami Gardens, fended off a primary challenge from Democrat Wancito Francius, a 46-year-old small business owner who lives in North Miami.

Benjamin defeated Francius with 81% of the vote to Francius’ 19 % in the district that includes parts of North Miami, North Miami Beach, Miami Gardens and Ives Estate.

Benjamin will face Pierre M. Prime, a no-party-affiliated candidate, in November.

House District 113: Lopez vs. D’Amico in November

In the two-party match-ups to succeed Rep. Nick Duran in the district which covers a central portion of Miami-Dade County, including the cities of Coral Gables, Key Biscayne and Miami, the victors are Republican Vicki Lopez and Democrat Alessandro “A.J.” D’Amico.

Lopez, 64, a former Lee County commissioner, defeated Alberto Perosch, 59, a property manager and a member of the Venezuelan American Republican Alliance with 66% of the vote to Perosch’s 33%. She will face off against D’Amico, 28, a former legislative aide to both former state Sen. Rene Garcia and former Congresswoman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen, both Republicans.

D’Amico defeated Andrés Althabe, 74, president of the Biscayne Neighborhoods Association, with 68% of the vote to Althabe’s 32%.

House District 118: Fernandez-Barquin vs. Farias in November

Incumbent Rep. Juan Fernandez-Barquin easily defeated challengers Francisco Rodriguez and Daniel Sotelo in the Republican primary to represent the newly mapped House District 118, which covers parts of Miami-Dade County west of Florida’s Turnpike, including unincorporated Kendall, Perrine, Sunset and Westchester neighborhoods.

Fernandez-Barquin, a 39-year-old attorney, won 65% of the vote to Sotelo’s 27% and Rodriguez’s 8%. He now faces Democrat Johnny Gonzalo Farias to get elected to a third term.

House District 119: Porras vs. Gonzalez in November

Republican Juan Carlos Porras, a 25-year-old former legislative aide to several state House members, will face off in November against Democrat Gabriel Gonzalez in the race to succeed outgoing state Rep. Anthony Rodriguez. The newly-drawn district represents Southwest Miami-Dade east of Krome Avenue and stretches from Tamiami Trail to Monkey Jungle.

Porras was on his way to capturing 49% of the vote in the crowded GOP primary against Ashley Alvarez, Rob Gonzalez, Jose Soto and Ricky Tsay. Gabriel Gonzalez, a 35-year-old Guatemala-born attorney, defeated James A. Cueva, 45-year-old Kendall West attorney in the Democratic primary with 56% of the vote to Cueva’s 44%.

House District 120: Mooney vs. Gentle in November

Incumbent Republican Jim Mooney defeated challengers Rhonda Rebman Lopez and Robert Scott Allen to set up a general election challenge against Democrat Adam Gentle to represent the state’s southernmost House district, which includes the Florida Keys.

Mooney won 50% of the vote to Lopez’s 41% and Allen’s 9%. Gentle, a 41-year-old attorney, defeated Daniel “Dan” Horton-Diaz, 37, an attorney and former legislative aide to state Sen. Annette Taddeo by a 58-42% margin.

CORRECTION: This story was updated to clarify that Gabriel Gonzalez, not Rob, won the Democratic primary for House District 119.