Florida
Rick Scott places $10M in TV ads as the Florida Senate race enters homestretch
TALLAHASSEE, Fla. — Republican Sen. Rick Scott is set to place roughly $10 million in new TV ads in the homestretch of a Florida Senate race that he is widely seen as leading but that Democrats have continued to make noise in.
The Scott TV buy, first shared with NBC News, will focus mostly on the Tampa, Orlando and Miami media markets, with spot buys in other parts of the state, according to campaign advisers.
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He is running against former Democratic Rep. Debbie Mucarsel-Powell, who has been massively outspent but is getting some national help from the Democratic Senatorial Campaign Committee in the race’s final weeks.
The DSCC has pledged a “multimillion” dollar effort to help Mucarsel-Powell, Florida Democratic Party Chair Nikki Fried announced Monday in a call with reporters. She was unable to provide a specific figure, and the DSCC declined to offer one. Last week, it said in a release that it was making a multimillion-dollar TV buy in both Florida in Texas but did not disclose specifics.
“That money is coming at the right time, and we are going to use it to make sure that we are building the infrastructure to get Debbie Mucarsel-Powell over the finish line [and] retire Rick Scott,” Fried said.
Regardless of whatever national money comes for Democrats, Scott will no doubt hold his long-running huge cash advantage. Scott has spent at least $8 million of his personal wealth, and the $10 million media buy is as much as Mucarsel-Powell’s campaign had spent total throughout the end of July. Scott’s campaign spent $20 million during that same time, according to the most recently available campaign finance reports.
“Our campaign has taken this race seriously from the beginning. We are in a strong position and keeping our feet on the gas through the end,” Scott adviser Chris Hartline said.
The race itself has been a bit off the national radar, as Florida is increasingly seen as a Republican stronghold. But Democrats have placed thousands of volunteers across the state and maintained consistent messaging framing Scott as “in trouble,” highlighting what has long been Scott’s relatively low approval rating for a politician who has never lost a statewide campaign in Florida.
“It’s no surprise that polling shows this race tied — Floridians know that Rick Scott is far too extreme for our state,” Mucarsel-Powell said. “For 14 years Rick Scott has ruthlessly attacked our freedoms, hard-earned benefits and economic opportunities. He has cut funding for our education, our veterans and our coastal communities as our state continues to face the effects of extreme weather, climate change and an affordability crisis that began under his watch.”
Scott has generally run like an incumbent who expects to win. He has not debated Mucarsel-Powell and has focused on her less than she has on him — a common tactic for a candidate who thinks they are winning. His most consistent message has painted Mucarsel-Powell as “an open borders socialist.”
Public polling in the race has generally had Scott on top, but not by huge margins. He has been up anywhere from the high single digits to only a handful of percentage points. Because the race has been so close on paper, it has fueled Democrats’ message that it is up for grabs.
New polling shared with NBC News from the GOP polling firm Tyson Group has Scott up 46-38, with 12% unsure, an 8-point margin that is among the biggest polling gaps of the election cycle.
Hartline, the Scott adviser, said it’s margins like that that have them unconcerned even if national money does flow into the race.
“National Democrats can flirt with spending in Florida if they want and risk losing incumbent races,” he said. “We will have a big win either way.”
Plans for a new Wawa to open in Port St. Lucie were approved.
A new Wawa fuel station and convenience store will open in Port St. Lucie now that the plans have been approved.
The Wawa will be at the corner of Village Parkway and Becker Road in front of the Lowe’s which is expected to open in the summer of 2026, according to the city’s website.
The plans for a Wawa convenience store and eight fuel pumps were submitted to the city Dec. 3, 2025.
What will go in Port St. Lucie’s Southern Grove?
The plans for the Shoppes at Southern Grove show there will be a new Lowe’s store and six additional outparcels.
The six additional outparcels include the following:
- Gas station: 5,915 square feet
- Outparcel A: 1.2 acres
- Outparcel B: 1.14 acres
- Outparcel C: 1.83 acres
- Outparcel D: 1.04 acres
- Outparcel E: 1.02 acres
Olivia Franklin is TCPalm’s trending reporter. You can contact her at olivia.franklin@tcpalm.com, 317-627-8048 or follow her on X @Livvvvv_5.
SUNRISE, Fla. – Five Florida Panthers players and five staff members will represent their home countries at the upcoming 2026 IIHF World Championship, taking place May 15 through May 31 in Zurich and Fribourg, Switzerland. Games will be broadcast on NHL Network in the United States.
Marek Alscher, 22, will represent Czechia at the IIHF World Championship for the first time. He previously played for his home country at the 2024 IIHF U20 World Junior Championship, skating in seven games to help the Czechs capture the bronze medal over Finland. Alscher made his NHL debut with the Panthers in 2025-26, notching three assists over four games played. He also skated in 52 American Hockey League (AHL) games with Florida’s affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers, recording 11 points (3-8-11).
Aleksander Barkov, 30, missed the 2026 Winter Olympic Games due to injury but had been named to Finland’s preliminary roster in June of 2025. He previously earned a bronze medal at the 2014 Winter Olympic Games alongside current Panthers assistant coach Tuomo Ruutu, and earned a silver medal representing his home country at the 2016 IIHF Men’s World Championship. At the 2025 NHL 4 Nations Face-Off, Barkov served as captain of Finland.
Anton Lundell, 24, will be participating in his second IIHF World Championship after earning a silver medal with Finland in 2021, where he posted seven points (4-3-7) in 10 games as a 19-year-old. He helped Finland capture the bronze medal at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games this season and previously earned gold at the 2019 IIHF U20 WJC and 2018 IIHF U18 WJC, as well as a bronze medal at the 2021 U20 WJC.
Sandis Vilmanis, 22, will represent Latvia at the IIHF World Championship for the first time in his career. He played for Latvia at the 2026 Winter Olympic Games in February as well as at the 2022, 2023 and 2024 IIHF U20 World Junior Championships, serving as an alternate captain in 2024 where he produced four points (2-2-4) over five games. Vilmanis made his NHL debut with the Panthers in 2025-26, logging five points (3-2-5) in 19 games with Florida while compiling 38 points (17-21-38) in 48 American Hockey League (AHL) contests with the Panthers affiliate, the Charlotte Checkers.
Matthew Tkachuk, 28, will attempt to become the first American to join the Triple Gold Club (Stanley Cup, World Championship Gold Medal and Olympic Gold Medal), as well as the first player in NHL history to win all three parts of the Triple Gold Club within a 12-month span. This will be Tkachuk’s first time participating in the IIHF World Championship.
In addition to his 2026 Olympic gold medal, Tkachuk also earned gold representing the United States at the 2015 IIHF U18 World Junior Championship and the 2014 U17 World Hockey Challenge, as well as a bronze medal at the 2016 IIHF U20 WJC. He served as alternate captain for the U.S. at the 2026 Olympics and 2025 4 Nations Face-Off.
Florida will have four staff members representing the United States. Panthers Assistant General Manager Brett Peterson is serving as General Manager for the second time after holding the position in 2024. Panthers Head Equipment Manager Teddy Richards will serve as equipment manager and Florida’s Head Athletic Trainer Dave DiNapoli will work as athletic trainer. Panthers President of Hockey Operations & General Manager Bill Zito will serve on the Advisory Group.
Panthers Assistant General Manager Gregory Campbell will assist with evaluating and selecting players for Canada.
Panthers fans can stay up to date on all the Cats’ representatives at the 2026 IIHF World Championships at FloridaPanthers.com/WorldChampionship.
2026-27 Florida Panthers Territory Memberships are available now! Click here to learn more. For all the latest in Panthers news, concerts and events at Amerant Bank Arena & FTL War Memorial, sign up for ’93 Society newsletter and receive information straight to your inbox. Visit FloridaPanthers.com or SeatGeek.com for all ticketing needs.
A Martin County slaughterhouse near Lake Okeechobee could increase toxic algal blooms in the C-44 Canal, St. Lucie River and Indian River Lagoon.
There have been 81 algal blooms in the past two years within 2 miles of a proposed slaughterhouse in western Martin County, according to the Florida Department of Environmental Protection Algal Bloom Dashboard.
The slaughterhouse will increase pollution and bring more potentially toxic algal blooms to Lake Okeechobee, whose waters sometimes are released into the C-44 Canal and flow into the St. Lucie River and Indian River Lagoon in Stuart, opponents say.
Chancey Bay Ranch owner Tuny Mizrachi has proposed building a 56,784-square-foot slaughterhouse on 26 acres of his 2,046-acre-property at 8401 SW Connors Highway, abutting Lake O.
5 ways a slaughterhouse can increase Lake Okeechobee pollution
The Guardians of Martin County have raised at least five concerns with the Martin County Commission:
- Meat processing facilities, though necessary, have the potential to be noisy nuisances and significant sources of disease and pollution for air and water.
- The facility would be a new source of pollution in a watershed that’s designated as “impaired” because of elevated concentrations of nitrogen and phosphorus.
- The facility would be a potential new source of pollutants near one of Martin County’s lowest income and most ethnically diverse communities.
- There’s no evidence the facility has a National Pollutant Discharge Elimination System permit, or plans to follow effluent limitation guidelines or conduct water-quality monitoring.
- The South Florida Water Management District has permitted the facility to withdraw 6.7 million gallons of water per year for 20 years from Florida’s surficial aquifer, despite it being subject to varying levels of saltwater intrusion, especially in Martin County. The SFWMD has designated all of Martin County a Water Resource Caution Area.
Blood, feces, oil, grease, ammonia and antibiotic residue from the proposed slaughterhouse would contribute to harmful algal blooms, including toxic cyanobacteria, Martin County Administrator Don Donaldson wrote to the DEP and SFWMD.
Tim O’Hara is TCPalm’s environment reporter. Contact him at tim.ohara@tcpalm.com.
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