A squeaker of a Florida House race that triggered a machine recount Friday ultimately confirmed election night totals: Former Wellington Mayor Anne Gerwig flipped a seat and racked up a win for Republicans , defeating incumbent Democratic state Rep. Katherine Waldron .
Waldron, also of Wellington, lost her first bid for re-election to the House seat that represents Wellington, parts of Greenacres and Boynton Beach.
Gerwig’s victory further cements the state Legislature’s Republican supermajority and is more evidence Palm Beach County is no longer the reliable Democratic stronghold it was only a few election cycles ago. Democratic Rep. Matt Wilhite formerly represented the area in the district that was redrawn into its current configuration in 2022.
The post-2024 election tally shows that Republicans hold 86 of out of 120 seats in the state Legislature’s lower chamber. That’s two more Republican seats than last year, when the GOP-dominated chamber passed Republican priorities that garnered headlines.