Jesse Scheckner
Nonprofit executive Debra Tendrich has ensured that Palm Beach County residents in House District 89 will continue to be represented by a Democrat in Tallahassee.
With early votes fully tallied, mail-in ballots partially counted and all 77 precincts reporting Tuesday, Tendrich had 51% of the vote to defeat Republican private school administrator Daniel Zapata. She’ll succeed Democratic Rep. David Silvers, who is moving onto other endeavors after reaching term limits.
Tendrich, 38, is the founder and CEO of a childhood nutrition nonprofit called Eat Better Live Better. Zapata, 24, works at Atlantic Christian Academy in West Palm Beach and challenged Silvers in 2022.
The candidates agreed that improving education, addressing Florida’s many affordability issues and supporting small businesses were vital endeavors for HD 89’s next Representative.
Tendrich ran on a promise to fight for abortion protections, tackle gun violence and criminal justice reform. She said most people who oppose diversity, equity and inclusion (DEI) practices have been misled about what they are. She hoped to extend DEI in schools and workplaces while creating training programs to teach about it.
She also wanted to repeal a law from 2023 that placed sweeping limits on lawsuits in Florida, which she called “anti-consumer” and “gift-wrapped for insurance companies.” And in keeping with the mission of the nonprofit she runs, Tendrich promised to address food insecurity.
Zapata had aims on stabilizing the state’s insurance market. He “wholeheartedly” supported a 2023 bill the Legislature passed to allow more public education dollars to be spent on vouchers covering private tuition bills and vowed to continue fighting for more such accommodations.
He raised slightly more than Tendrich through early October, thanks in large part to a $50,000 contribution from the Palm Beach County GOP. Aside from that, he collected about $18,500.
Tendrich, who soundly defeated one Primary opponent in August, raised $67,500 through a blend of personal checks and organizational donations.
HD 89 covers a large inland portion of Palm Beach County stretching east from Greenacres to Lake Worth Beach, north from Atlantis to Cloud Lake and containing Lake Clarke Shores and Palm Springs.
The district leans heavily Democratic, with 39% of its voters registered as Democrats compared to 27.6% who are Republicans.
Voters there sided with Joe Biden by a 19-percentage-point margin in 2020, but picked Gov. Ron DeSantis by a 1-point margin two years later after his administration redrew its boundaries.
