Florida state legislative special elections, 2026

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2026 State Legislative Special Elections
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As of January, four special elections have been called to fill vacant seats in the Florida State Legislature.

Click here to read more about the special elections.

House special elections called:

• District 87: March 24
• District 52: March 24 (canceled)
• District 51: March 24

Senate special elections called:

• District 14: March 24

How vacancies are filled in Florida

If there is a vacancy in the Florida State Legislature, a special election must be called to fill the vacant seat. The governor is responsible for calling the election and must consult with the secretary of state to set the election dates and nominating deadlines. The person elected to fill the seat serves for the remainder of the unexpired term.

See sources: Florida Stat. § 100.101

About the legislature

The Florida State Legislature is the state legislature of Florida. The Florida Constitution mandates a bicameral state legislature with an upper house, the Florida State Senate, and a lower house, the Florida House of Representatives. Due to term limits, House members may be elected for up to four terms (eight years), while State Senators can be elected for up to two terms (eight years).

The boxes below show the partisan composition of both chambers directly before and after the most recent general elections prior to 2025. For the most up-to-date numbers on partisan composition in this legislature, see here (Senate) and here (House).

Florida State Senate
Party		As of November 5, 2024	After November 6, 2024
	Democratic Party	11	12
	Republican Party	28	28
	Vacancy	1	0
Total		40	40

Florida House of Representatives
Party		As of November 5, 2024	After November 6, 2024
	Democratic Party	36	33
	Republican Party	84	86
	Vacancy	0	1
Total		120	120

Special elections

Click [show] to the right of the district name for more information:

March 24, 2026

Florida House of Representatives District 52

See also: Florida state legislative special elections, 2026 A special election for Florida House of Representatives District 52 was set to take place on March 24, 2026. A primary was scheduled to take place on January 13, 2026. The primary and general elections were not needed as only one candidate filed to run. The candidate filing deadline was November 18, 2025. The seat became vacant on September 18, 2025, after John Temple (R) resigned from office following his appointment as president of Lake-Sumter State College. See also: Florida state legislative special elections, 2026 General election The general election scheduled for March 24, 2026, was canceled. Samantha Scott (R) won election in the special general election for Florida House of Representatives District 52 without appearing on the ballot. Democratic primary The Democratic primary scheduled for January 13, 2026, was canceled. Withdrawn or disqualified candidates Pamala Harrison-Bivins (D) Republican primary The Republican primary scheduled for January 13, 2026, was canceled. Samantha Scott (R) advanced from the special Republican primary for Florida House of Representatives District 52 without appearing on the ballot.

Historical data

There were 1,102 state legislative special elections that took place from 2010 to 2025. Florida held 39 special elections during the same time period. The largest number of special elections in Florida took place in 2015 when five special elections were held.

The table below details how many state legislative special elections were held in a state in a given year.

Special elections throughout the country

See also: State legislative special elections, 2026

As of January 2026, 50 state legislative special elections have been scheduled for 2026 in 20 states. Between 2011 and 2024, an average of 70 special elections took place each year.

Breakdown of 2026 special elections

In 2026, special elections for state legislative positions are being held for the following reasons:

• 28 due to appointment, election, or the seeking of election to another position
• 18 due to resignation
• 4 due to the death of the incumbent

Impact of special elections on partisan composition

The partisan breakdown for the special elections is as follows:

• 29 Democratic seats
• 21 Republican seats

As of January 22nd, 2026, Republicans controlled 55.12% of all state legislative seats nationally, while Democrats held 43.83%. Republicans held a majority in 57 chambers, and Democrats held the majority in 39 chambers. Two chambers (Alaska House and Alaska Senate) were organized under multipartisan, power-sharing coalitions. One chamber (Minnesota House of Representatives) was split evenly between both parties.

Partisan balance of all 7,386 state legislative seats
Legislative chamber			Other	Vacant
State senates	836	1,119	6	12
State houses	2,401	2,952	20	40
Total:	3,237	4,071	26	52

The table below details how many seats changed parties as the result of a special election in 2026. The number on the left reflects how many vacant seats were originally held by each party, while the number on the right shows how many vacant seats each party won in the special elections.

Note: This table reflects information for elections that have been held and not the total number of vacant seats.

Partisan Change from Special Elections (2026)
Party		As of Special Election	After Special Election
	Democratic Party	29	7
	Republican Party	21	3
	Independent	0	0
Total		50	10

Flipped seats

In 2026, as of January, no seats flipped as a result of state legislative special elections.

See also

• State legislative special elections, 2026
• State legislative special elections, 2025
• State legislative special elections, 2024
• State legislative special elections, 2023
• Florida State Legislature

Footnotes

State legislatures

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2026

State legislative elections (2026) • State legislative special elections (2026) • Primary dates and filing requirements • 2026 Session Dates

2025

State legislative elections (2025) • State legislative special elections (2025) • Primary dates and filing requirements • 2025 Session Dates

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Features of state legislatures

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State senates

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State houses

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Leadership positions

President of the Senate • President Pro Tempore • Senate Majority Leader • Senate Minority Leader • House Majority Leader • House Minority Leader • State Speaker of the House

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