Republicans easily won a trio of Northeast Florida legislative seats Tuesday during special elections triggered by the resignation last year of former Sen. John Thrasher, R-St. Augustine, to become president of Florida State University.
Given the GOP’s dominance in the region and the significant fundraising edge of the Republican candidates, the results were expected.
With all precincts reporting in the race for Thrasher’s former Senate District 6 seat, Rep. Travis Hutson, R-Elkton, was carrying about 69.7 percent of the vote to 30.3 percent for Daytona Beach Democrat David Cox. Hutson had earlier defeated Rep. Ronald “Doc” Renuart of Ponte Vedra Beach in a GOP primary.
“I would like to thank the voters for their unyielding support of my campaign and the values I represent during this special election,” said Hutson. “As I have said many times on the campaign trail, I am passionate about our Northeast Florida community and I am humbled the voters have chosen me to represent the First Coast in the Florida Senate.”