Retired Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman Credit: AVindman / X
Retired Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman, who played a central role in President Donald Trump’s first impeachment, announced last Tuesday that he is the latest Democrat to enter into the race for U.S. Senate against GOP incumbent Ashley Moody.
The 50-year-old Vindman is a 21-year U.S. Army combat veteran who later served as a national security expert working for presidents of both parties. As an infantryman, he was wounded in Iraq and awarded a Purple Heart.
He was working as director of European Affairs for the National Security Council as a top expert on Ukraine when he was swept up in the impeachment hearings against Trump led by congressional House Democrats in 2019. Trump ousted him from his position shortly after the U.S. Senate acquitted the president in that impeachment trial.
Vindman has been living in Broward County since 2023, and stated in an interview with CBS Miami last May that he was considering a run for Senate.
In a campaign video released to announce his candidacy, Vindman says, “This president unleashed a reign of terror and retribution, not just against me and my family, but against all of us.”
“Today, our country is in chaos,” he continues. “Thug militias attacking citizens. Tariffs pushing prices sky-high. Healthcare premiums through the roof. And Florida homeowners are being absolutely screwed because Ashley Moody caved to the big insurance companies. They put Moody in the Senate to be a ‘yes’ vote for Trump and the billionaires. She’s not Florida’s senator. She’s theirs.”
Vindman’s twin brother, Eugene Vindman, was elected to the U.S House of Representatives representing Virginia’s 7th District in November 2024.
Vindman now joins Jacksonville state Rep. Angie Nixon and former Brevard County School Board member Jennifer Jenkins in the race for the Democratic nomination. The primary election takes place on Aug. 18. The winner will take on Moody, who was elected twice statewide as Florida attorney general but has not faced the voters since she was appointed a year ago by Gov. Ron DeSantis to replace Marco Rubio in the U.S. Senate.
Representatives from both parties weighed in on Vindman’s announcement on Tuesday.
Emma Hall, the Southeast regional communications director with the Republican National Committee, bashed Vindman.
“Alexander Vindman is a carpetbagger and a grifter, and his campaign is doomed from the start,” Hall said in a statement.
One of Vindman’s Democratic opponents, Jennifer Jenkins, also weighed in, saying that she welcomed him to the race and thanked him for his “years of service to our country.”
It’s important that people step forward to challenge what’s happening right now up and down the ballot,” she said. “I’m in this race because I know what Floridians are feeling. Parents are choosing between groceries and rent, young people are being priced out of their futures, and seniors are struggling to afford their medications.
I’ve lived those challenges, and I’ve seen the consequences of extreme, corrupt, broken government as a mom, an educator, and as a local leader. “
Florida Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, a nonprofit news network supported by grants and a coalition of donors as a 501c(3) public charity. Florida Phoenix maintains editorial independence. Contact Editor Michael Moline for questions: info@floridaphoenix.com.
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This article appears in Jan. 29 – Feb. 04.
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