Republican Representative Cory Mills lost his primary in Florida's 7th Congressional District on Tuesday, falling to challenger Ryan Elijah by roughly 12 percentage points as he faced overlapping federal scrutiny. Mills is the 11th House member to lose a primary this year.
Elijah, backed by Republican Representatives Anna Paulina Luna and Mike Haridopolos, secured about 46 percent of the vote to Mills' 34 percent with most ballots counted. The incumbent had been dogged by a House Ethics Committee investigation into sexual misconduct allegations and campaign finance violations, as well as a Justice Department probe into his finances. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis publicly distanced himself from Mills, stating he did not support the congressman.
Elijah now advances to face Bale Dalton, a former NASA chief of staff and Navy veteran backed by the Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee. The Cook Political Report recently downgraded the district from solid to likely Republican.