Rick Scott Challenger Mucarsel-Powell Continues to Narrow the Gap as Florida Senate Elections Near

Former Florida Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell is seemingly posing a serious challenge to Rick Scott ahead of the Florida Senate elections, with most surveys showing the Democrat within striking distance less than two months away from going to the polls.

The latest study, conducted by The Bullfinch Group and The Independent Center among 600 registered voters between September 20 and 23, shows Mucarsel-Powell trailing Scott by just two percentage points, 44% to the incumbent's 46%.

Most polls conducted throughout the month and included in FiveThirtyEight's aggregator have Scott leading by five percentage points or less, the only outlier being one by ActiVote, which showed the former Florida governor leading by 54% to Mucarsel-Powell's 46%.

The most recent poll is among the closest that the Democrat has ever been to the lead. Only one by Emerson College and The Hill from September 3-5 showed a narrower difference, with Scott leading 46% to 45%.

Democrats in Florida face an uphill battle undoing a strengthened GOP hold in the state in recent years, particularly in an election where former President Trump is expected to add to GOP turnout in the state. Nevertheless, they are still confident they can win certain races ahead of November.

In fact, the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee (DSCC) has decided to include Florida as one of ten battleground states which will get a $25 million investment into direct voter outreach programs along with Arizona, Maryland, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Wisconsin.

The DSCC's strategy includes on-the-ground organizing, phone banking, and online outreach, with particular emphasis on engaging young voters and people of color. The investment also includes hiring field organizers and conducting in-person events.

Axios reported that the party has often overlooked Florida in the past, but this year, "citing an anticipated boost in progressive interest due to referenda on marijuana and abortion rights, party leaders have been urging national Democrats to flip the script."

Mucarsel-Powell as she has cut into Scott's advantage despite the fact that the Republican's campaign has spent nearly $12 million on advertising since the start of 2023, compared to her $4.5 million, according to AdImpact. In the Miami-Fort Lauderdale media market alone, Republican spending on the race has topped Democrats by more than $2 million.

Mucarsel-Powell has also launched a campaign on WhatsApp to reach voters and attack a sea of disinformation. The effort includes two channels on the messaging platform— one in English and another in Spanish.

"It's particularly created to target Latino voters across the state to provide them with accurate, factual information coming straight from the source," Mucarsel-Powell, who is also the only Latina candidate running for U.S. Senate this year, told NPR.