'Extremely angry': Elderly Florida voter unleashes on Elon Musk ahead of special election

01 April

The first special elections for the U.S. House of Representatives of 2025 are underway in Florida. And even though the congressional districts up for grabs are regarded as Republican strongholds, the GOP is nervous about holding onto them.

President Donald Trump has dedicated time to promoting Republican candidates for Florida's 1st and 6th Congressional Districts on his Truth Social account, letting Florida voters know about Tuesday's special election to fill the seats vacated by former Reps. Matt Gaetz (R-Fla.) and Mike Waltz (R-Fla.) The former was appointed to head the Department of Justice (though he removed himself from consideration after roughly a week) and the latter now serves as Trump's national security advisor.

But despite both districts voting heavily for Trump in 2024, Democrats are feeling more hopeful than usual, with candidates far out-raising the GOP in both races. Democrat Josh Weil, who is running for Waltz's old seat in the 6th district, raised more than $10 million while Trump-endorsed Republican Randy Fine raised just a tenth of that as of last week.

But some voters in that district are particularly upset about the role that Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has in Trump's White House. On Tuesday, CNN interviewed one elderly Florida voter who said Musk's slashing of federal agency budgets through his Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) was a major reason she showed up to vote.

"Does Mr. Musk have an effect on your vote?" A CNN reporter asked the woman.

"Oh yes," the woman said with a chuckle. "When I have called my senators, I have said that it makes me extremely angry that we have an un-appointed, un-elected person going in and making — and these aren't smart cuts, with a chainsaw, instead of a scalpel."

Both Republicans — Florida Chief Financial Officer Jimmy Patronis and state senator Randy Fine — are expected to win Tuesday night, though House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-N.Y.) has said he believes both Democratic candidates will run especially competitive races given the level of public anger at both Trump and DOGE. Gun violence prevention activist Gay Valimont is running against Patronis, and Weil is running against Fine. Democrats are also aiming to hold onto their 4-3 majority on the Wisconsin Supreme Court after Tuesday's election.

Watch the video of the woman's comments below, or by clicking this link.

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