Alexander Vindman announces Florida Senate campaign as a Democrat
Add Axios as your preferred source to
see more of our stories on Google.
Vindman campaign launch video
Alexander Vindman, the former National Security Council official who testified against President Trump during his first impeachment trial, is running to be the Democratic nominee in Florida's Senate race.
Why it matters: Vindman's entry into the Senate race gives Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer (D-N.Y.) another high-profile candidate to try and force Republicans to spend heavily to defend a seat.
- Vindman, who became a progressive hero for reporting his concerns about Trump's 2019 call with Volodymyr Zelensky, is expected to tap into a small-dollar fundraising network that powered his twin brother's 2024 successful congressional race.
- He is seeking to challenge Sen. Ashley Moody, who was appointed to fill Secretary of State Marco Rubio's seat early last year when he joined the Trump administration.
- Vindman, who retired as a lieutenant colonel in the Army, wrote a book about his time in the Trump White House as one of his top Ukraine officials. He claimed that reporting on Trump's phone call with Zelensky through official channels ended his military career.
Driving the news: In his launch video, Vindman opens by invoking his starring role in Trump's impeachment, before pivoting to a broader attack on Trump's second term.
- "Today, our country is in chaos. Thug militias attacking citizens," Vindman says, over grainy footage of Renee Good and Alex Pretti being shot in Minnesota.
- "They put Moody in the Senate to be a 'yes' vote for Trump and the billionaires. She's not Florida's senator. She's theirs," he says.
- "I stepped up when my country needed a soldier. I stood up when someone had to say - no one is above the law."
Zoom out: Florida is a solidly red state, with Trump winning by 13 percentage points in 2024 and Gov. Ron DeSantis winning by nearly 19 percentage points in 2022.
- But Democrats are optimistic that in a potential wave year, the untested Moody could be vulnerable.
- Moody had raised $4 million through the first three quarters of the year and ended September with $3.6 million cash on hand.
Zoom in: When Eugene Vindman announced his run for Congress, he quickly emerged as a fundraising juggernaut, pulling in $800,000 in his first 24 hours.
- He went on to win his Virginia congressional race in 2024 and continued to post strong numbers, and announced a total of $7 million in his first year in office.
