Jacob Ogles
Democrat Gay Valimont predicted before the election that if voters re-elected U.S. Rep. Matt Gaetz, he’d be gone within months. Turns out he left office even sooner, though for a potential promotion and not due to expulsion.
Regardless, Valimont always said she’d be ready to run again when the moment arose. She made good on that promise Monday, announcing a new campaign to succeed Gaetz in Congress.
“Now more than ever, our district deserves a leader who will fight for every voice,” she posted on X.
Her campaign confirmed she filed papers to run again in Florida’s 1st Congressional District. Valimont held a press conference outside the Escambia County Supervisor of Elections Office in Pensacola. There, she took fresh swipes at Gaetz, who resigned after President-elect Donald Trump announced he wanted the Fort Walton Beach Republican to be his Attorney General.
“Just days after the voters of this district entrusted their representation to him, Matt Gaetz abandoned his seat and walked away from the responsibility of serving the people of Northwest Florida, leaving us with no representation in Congress.
In November, Gaetz secured re-election to his U.S. House seat with 66% of the vote. But he resigned his seat after President-elect Trump announced Gaetz’s appointment as Attorney General. Gaetz also said he does not intend to take an oath of office for the coming term.
Valimont technically has filed for 2026, but expects to be on the ballot much sooner. Gov. Ron DeSantis has asked Secretary of State Cord Byrd to quickly schedule and announce plans for a Special Election to replace Gaetz in Congress. Candidates can already set up federal election accounts.
Located in the Panhandle and anchored by Pensacola, the district is one of the state’s most conservative. Gaetz was elected to the seat in 2016, winning more than 69% of the vote. Inside CD 1, more than 53% of the electorate is registered Republican, according to the most recent L2 voter data. Only 22% of the district’s voters are registered as Democrats.
Valimont unquestionably faces an uphill climb, but benefits from recently having her name on the ballot. As of Oct. 16, weeks before the Nov. 5 General Election, she had nearly $65,000 in cash on hand reported in her federal campaign account.
Thanks largely to Gaetz’s high profile, she raised more than $1.4 million to run in CD 1 in the 2024 election cycle, despite the rightward tilt of the district. She continued to focus on Gaetz while announcing her new run. She alluded to reports that the House Ethics Committee was ready to release a report on sexual misconduct by Gaetz within days of his resignation.
“While the circumstances surrounding his resignation may not be entirely clear, what is clear is that this district deserves better,” she said. “We deserve leadership that puts people before politics, that doesn’t run from their commitments, and which shows up for you every single day.”
