Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried acknowledged Sunday that the political landscape in her state differs sharply from what Democrats are seeing in other parts of the country.
Fried made the comments during an appearance on WPLG-TV’s “This Week in South Florida,” where host Glenna Milberg asked how Florida’s more moderate Democratic candidates could share a party with progressive and socialist candidates gaining national attention.
Milberg pointed to the contrast between Florida’s leading Democratic candidates for governor, who are generally viewed as centrists, and more progressive figures elsewhere in the country who appear to have growing momentum.
“How is this conversation between your front-running gubernatorial candidates, who are very centrist, very moderate Democrats, and some of the party’s real progressive Democrats who are running against them, looking for attention, and kind of have a national wave at their back?” Milberg asked.
Fried responded by emphasizing that Florida’s electorate has its own political history and concerns.
“You nailed it on the head,” Fried said. “Florida’s different.”
She added that Democrats hoping to compete statewide must build a coalition that reflects Florida’s unusually diverse population.
“The coalitions that have to be built here in Florida are different,” Fried said.
Fried then pointed to the large number of Floridians who came to the United States after living under communist, socialist, or authoritarian governments. Those experiences, she suggested, shape how many voters respond to political labels and policy proposals associated with the left.
“We have hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people that call Florida home, that left communist and socialist and authoritarian regimes to find a better way of life here in the state of Florida,” she said.
That political reality has long created challenges for Democratic candidates in Florida. Republicans have increasingly dominated statewide elections, while Democratic candidates have struggled to rebuild the broader coalition that once made the state highly competitive.
Fried, a former Florida agriculture commissioner, ran for governor in 2022 but lost the Democratic primary to former Republican governor and then-Democratic congressman Charlie Crist. Crist later lost the general election to Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis by a wide margin.
Fried’s remarks also highlighted a larger debate within the Democratic Party. In several states, candidates openly associated with democratic socialism have gained support and won prominent races. Some of those candidates are affiliated with the Democratic Socialists of America, an organization that supports policies such as reparations for slavery, major changes to immigration enforcement, expanded public programs, and a larger government role in the economy.
Those positions may be popular with some Democratic voters in heavily liberal cities and districts, but they can be more difficult to promote in Florida. The state has a large Cuban American population, along with Venezuelan, Nicaraguan, and other immigrant communities whose families have direct experience with authoritarian or socialist governments.