By Christine Sexton | Senior Reporter
“The most ordinary man imaginable came to my home state to tell me to get out of America while he and Absent Ashley enjoyed the comfort of buildings my ancestors helped build. Imagine standing on the shoulders of the people who built this country and then telling their descendants they don’t belong here.”— U.S. Senate Democratic hopeful Angie Nixon
Vice President J.D. Vance speaking at Lakeland Linder International Airport in Lakeland on Oct. 1, 2026 (Photo by Mitch Perry/Florida Phoenix)
Vice President JD Vance was in Lakeland Thursday boasting to hundreds of people who gathered in an airplane hangar at Lakeland Linder International Airport that it was almost “too easy” to knock down the top Democrats on the 2026 ballot: David Jolly for governor and Angie Nixon for U.S. Senate. The VP’s appearance came as the Florida Democratic Party announced that for the first time in five years it had signed up more registered voters than the GOP. The Democrats registered 493 more voters in September than their Republican counterparts.
Florida Attorney General James Uthmeier filed a lawsuit Thursday against Pfizer Inc., alleging unfair and deceptive marketing of Pfizer’s COVID-19 vaccine. Filed in state trial court in St. Lucie County the suit seeks monetary damages for each violation of Florida law plus an injunction against future violations.
A national report released Thursday shows nearly 48% of Florida mothers surveyed said they had struggled to take care of their own mental health needs in the past month. When asked to name a specific concern affecting their families, 41% of the mothers who responded listed financial stress. Mental health (11%) ranked as the second leading concern among mothers.
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