Cong. Randy Fine defeats Dan Bilzerian in primary marked by antisemitism
Rep. Randy Fine (R-FL) won his high-profile primary Tuesday after social media star Dan Bilzerian jumped in the race that was plagued by antisemitism.
Fine won by bringing in 56.8% of the vote compared to Bilzerian’s mere 17.9% when the Associated Press called the race at 7:53 p.m.
Bilzerian ran an outwardly antisemitic campaign against Fine, who is one of the most outspoken supporters of Israel in Congress. There were two other candidates in the race, veteran Charles Gambaro and activist Aaron Baker.
Fine is backed by Trump and was elected to Congress last year by a special election to fill the vacant seat left by former Rep. Mike Waltz, who resigned to become the U.S. national security adviser.
Bilzerian lost despite his efforts to mobilize a massive social media following of over 25 million, building his campaign around America First policies and against the American Israel Public Affairs Committee, which included many controversial comments about the Jewish community and Israel.
Bilzerian released an AI-generated video last week attacking Fine’s Jewish identity, including vulgar language calling him a “fat Jew” and portraying him as “Satanic.”
The heat on the campaign trail escalated this week, which prompted Democratic and Republican House leadership to condemn the antisemitic rhetoric from Fine’s primary challenger.
“The vile attack ads against Congressman Randy Fine in Florida’s 6th District are disgusting and should be condemned by all political leaders on the Right and Left,” House Speaker Mike Johnson (R-LA) wrote ahead of the primary. “Antisemitism and outward hatred of Jewish communities have no place in our politics or in America, and we will continue to call them out wherever they arise.”
“The hateful campaign being run by Daniel Bilzerian in Florida is blatantly antisemitic and shocks the conscience,” House Minority Leader Hakeem Jeffries (D-NY) wrote in a statement.
While Bilzerian attacked Fine over his Jewish identity, Fine attacked his opponent over his Armenian heritage: “We don’t want Armenians to be able to serve in Congress.” Fine later explained he believed any “citizens of a foreign country” should not serve in Congress.
Fine had a cash advantage from donors, bringing in over $4 million this cycle with $1.2 million cash on hand, according to the Federal Election Commission. Bilzerian loaned his campaign nearly $1 million.
Trump carried the central Florida district by 30 points in 2024. The seat did not substantially change during the state’s 2026 redistricting process, which began after the Supreme Court scaled back minority-voting protections in the Voting Rights Act.
