Former President Donald Trump is the favorite to win Florida in November’s election, but the race in the Sunshine State could still be close, according to polling.

A recent survey of 600 registered voters by the Independent Center and The Bullfinch Group, conducted September 20 and 23, showed Trump had a 1-point lead over Vice President Kamala Harris in Florida (48 percent to 47). The results have a margin of error of plus or minus 4 percentage points.

The poll shows a tighter race than other Florida surveys. It was published prior to the Democratic National Committee announcing they consider Florida and its 30 Electoral College votes a “priority state that we know Democrats can win” in November. They will be investing more than $400,000 to boost Harris’ chances.

Florida was once the most vital swing state in the country, as seen when the entire 2000 election between George W. Bush and Al Gore came down to just a few hundred votes in the state. Florida is considered to have shifted more Republican in recent years following Trump’s victories in the 2016 and 2020 elections. Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis also won a resounding reelection victory in 2022, beating Democrat Charlie Crist by 19 points.

Florida will be voting in November on whether to overturn the state’s six-week abortion ban. Democrats believe having the hot topic issue of abortion access on the ballot will help them in both presidential and statewide races.

Thomas Gift, an associate professor of political science and director of the Centre on U.S. Politics at University College London, previously said that while Harris “looks likely” to lose Florida, Trump may still need to work harder to appeal to voters in the state than he would like.

“The mere fact that Trump may have to campaign vigorously in Florida could divert resources from true swing states like Pennsylvania, Wisconsin, and Michigan,” Gift told Newsweek.

“Even if Harris loses Florida, which certainly looks likely, this could cost Trump elsewhere if he’s forced to devote scarce time, resources, and energy into shoring up his lead in the Sunshine State.”

Newsweek has contacted the campaign teams for Trump and Harris for comment via email.

Other surveys beyond the Independent Center and The Bullfinch Group poll give Trump a more comfortable lead in Florida.

The former president’s current average lead over Harris in Florida is 4.1 points, according to the live tracker from 538. This is a greater margin of victory than the 3.3 points which Trump beat President Joe Biden by in 2020.

An Emerson College /The Hill poll of 815 likely voters, conducted between September 3-5, showed Trump beating Harris in Florida by 5 points (50 percent to 45). The results have a margin or error of plus or minus 3.4 percentage points.

Trump also leads Harris in Florida by 5 points (50 percent to 45) in a Redfield & Wilton Strategies poll of 1,602 likely voters conducted September 16-19.

The most recent Morning Consult survey of 2,948 likely voters, conducted September 9-18, gave Trump a 3-point lead over Harris in Florida (50 percent to 47).

Forecaster Race to the White House is giving Trump a 83 percent chance of victory in Florida in November’s election.

A Florida doctor who is accused of removing an Alabama man’s liver instead of the spleen, resulting in “immediate and catastrophic death,” had his medical license suspended.

In an emergency order filed Sept. 24, Florida Surgeon General Joseph Ladapo accused Thomas J. Shakvovksy of “repeated egregious surgical errors” and “egregious conduct of fabricating medical records” in the Aug. 21 death of 70-year-old William Bryan.

Shakvovksy was a practicing Osteopathic Physician at Ascension Sacred Heart Emerald Coast Hospital before the tragedy.

Bryan and his wife Beverly were visiting the Florida panhandle from their home in Muscle Shoals, Ala. when he began experiencing lower left abdominal pain.

The couple went to the hospital in Miramar Beach — which is between Pensacola and Panama City — where doctors were concerned about an abnormality of the spleen and they admitted him for further testing as Bryan declined “surgical intervention.”

Imaging revealed a suspected enlarged spleen and blood in the peritoneum with no active hemorrhage, according to the document.

Shaknovsky allegedly recommended that Bryan undergo a laparoscopic splenectomy on three consecutive days, with the patient refusing and wishing to go back to Alabama, but the doctor persisted, according to the order of emergency suspension viewed by The Post.

Bryan eventually relented to the doctor’s request who cited a decline in hemoglobin, but the order noted the decrease was only marginal over the three-day hospital stay.

Shaknovsky scheduled the “complicated procedure” for 4 p.m. on Aug. 21, with the operating room staff noting the surgery was being done by a “skeletal staff,” and the doctor couldn’t operate.

“Staff had concerns that Dr. Shaknovsky did not have the skill level to safely perform this procedure,” the surgeon general’s order noted.

The operation began but Shaknovsky quickly elected to convert to an open procedure citing poor visibility due to Bryan’s “distended colon and blood in the abdomen.”

It was revealed that Shaknovsky did not document the colon as part of his decision to change surgeries.

The doctor claims he started to dissect ligaments attached to the spleen, but was revealed to be the liver.

He then found and identified a vessel he intended to cut, claiming he could feel it pulsing under his finger, saying, “that’s scary.”

Shaknovsky used a surgical stapling device to fire a staple into the vessel resulting in a severe hemorrhage where Bryan went into cardiac arrest.

Staff began suctioning out blood and performing an emergency blood transfusion as a “code” was called and operating staff began CPR.

While staff worked to revive Bryan, Shaknovsky continued dissecting inside the abdomen, not asking for assistance where he removed a 4.6-pound liver.

“The staff looked at the readily identifiable liver on the table and were shocked when Dr. Shaknovsky told them it was the spleen. One staff member ‘felt sick to their stomach,’” a witness in the operating room said.

Bryan was pronounced dead as Shaknovsky said he died of a splenic artery aneurysm.

The doctor allegedly requested staff to label the liver as a “spleen” and send it to pathology.

The person who labeled the organ knew it wasn’t a spleen but followed instructions anyway, the order reported.

Shaknovsky left the operating room, only to return three times, with each visit the doctor stating Bryan died because of a splenic artery aneurysm

“The staff in the room felt that Dr. Shaknovsky was attempting to convince them that this is what occurred, even though they witnessed something different.”

Ladapo found Bryan’s death was not because of one mistake Shaknovsky made.

“Dr. Shaknovsky’s misidentification of the liver was not a momentary mistake,” the order found. “Despite converting to an open procedure to increase visibility, he dissected the liver, cutting the individual attachments to the abdomen.

“Each attachment that was severed was another opportunity for Dr. Shaknovsky to recognize that he was handling the completely wrong organ due to the anatomical differences between spleens and livers,”

“Despite having ample opportunity to realize his mistake and keep looking for the spleen, Dr. Shaknovsky failed to do so.”

Ladapo argued that any restriction of protecting the public must also include “complete restriction from performing general surgery.”

“Dr. Shaknovsky’s blatant disregard for the truth, falsification of an operative report, and attempt to convince OR staff to acquiesce to his version of events is a breach of the public trust. Dr. Shaknovsky’s dishonesty cannot be contained to only operative reports; it colors every aspect of the practice of osteopathic medicine.

The public must be able to trust that Dr. Shaknovsky’s description of patient care, whether that is in an emergency room, clinic, or primary care practice, is true. That trust is irrevocably broken. Therefore, there is no restriction that can adequately protect the public from an osteopathic physician who is willing to lie and pressure others to lie on their behalf,” the order stated.

The order also included a surgery from May 2023 where Shaknovsky removed a portion of a patient’s pancreas instead of the left adrenal gland resulting in “long-term, permanent harm.”

Bryan’s death was ruled a homicide due to “liver removed during splenectomy,” Zarzaur Law P.A., the family’s lawyers said on Facebook.

“This news is devastating for the healthcare industry, as the operating room is meant to be a place of the highest level of patient care,” the law firm wrote.

Bryan’s family is expected to file a malpractice lawsuit at the appropriate time.

TAMPA – The combination of storm surge from the Gulf of Mexico and lithium-ion batteries in vehicles has proven to be a recipe for disaster, as Florida agencies report responding to numerous fires in the wake of Hurricane Helene. 

Photos and videos from the Tampa Bay area show the aftermath of highly combustible batteries being exposed to saltwater, leaving homes damaged and cars destroyed.

A surge of 5-8 feet was reported across the metro during Helene, flooding hundreds of homes and raising the potential for further destruction.

Tampa Mayor Jane Castor warned that she’s seen reports of cars and even scooters that were exposed to saltwater and exploded in the days since landfall.

Helene is not the first hurricane where an increase in EV-related fires has occurred, a similar streak of incidents were reported during Hurricanes Idalia and Ian, both of which were powerful storms that impacted the Florida coastline.

NEW CHALLENGE TO FIREFIGHTERS DURING HURRICANES: ELECTRIC VEHICLE FIRES

Florida’s Chief Financial Officer and State Fire Marshal Jimmy Patronis has been one of the leading voices warning of the dangers that electric vehicles face during floodwaters.

“We saw a number of fires associated with EVs from Hurricane Ian,” Patronis previously stated. “We know that the saltwater from storm surge can compromise these batteries, causing fires which cannot be easily suppressed. The best fire teams can do is keep water on the battery until the fuel burns out.”

Officials in Pinellas County, a hotbed for EV ownership, said it has been messaging its residents warning about the dangers associated with the floodwaters.

“If you have an electric vehicle or golf cart, and it was exposed to salt water, it needs to be moved away from your home by at least 50 feet. These vehicles may catch fire in the coming days,” the county warned.

Firefighters said electric car fires are significantly harder to extinguish than those involving gas vehicles because of lithium-ion batteries.

ELECTRIC CAR IN FLORIDA CATCHES FIRE AFTER BEING FLOODED DURING HURRICANE IDALIA, FIREFIGHTERS SAY

Tesla, once the world’s largest electric vehicle maker, has previously contended that rates of fires involving its vehicles are lower when compared to other automobiles.

According to data from the U.S. Department of Energy, Florida has the second-highest number of registered electric vehicles in the country, with more than 250,000.