When Rep. Alcee Hastings died of cancer in April, he created a rare vacancy in a South Florida Democratic stronghold after 28 years of service. With no heir apparent waiting in the wings, a large crop of local Democrats quickly announced their candidacies to succeed the former federal judge who’d been a staple of the Florida political scene since 1970.
One person who did not move so quickly was GOP Gov. Ron DeSantis, whose responsibility it was to call a special election to replace Hastings.
Unlike in some other states, such as Ohio or New Mexico, where the special election…
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