Democrat Alan Cohn will face Republican Scott Franklin in Florida's 15th Congressional District.
The district is currently represented by first-term Rep. Ross Spano. Spano lost his bid for re-election after being defeated by Franklin in the state's August Republican primary election.
Cohn has slightly outraised and outspent Franklin as of September 30.
Democrat Alan Cohn is set to face off against Republican Scott Franklin in Florida's 15th Congressional District. The district is currently represented by first-term Rep. Ross Spano who was defeated by Franklin in the August Republican primary.
Shortly after being elected to Congress in 2018, Spano came under suspicion of violating campaign-finance law over a personal loan he made to his campaign. He is believed to have borrowed $180,000 from two of his friends before making the personal loan for a similar amount, and is currently the subject of investigations from the US House, the Florida Bar, and the US Department of Justice.
The candidates
Democrat Cohn is a longtime Floridian television journalist. In 2006, he was awarded a Peabody Award for his multi-year investigation into a Florida company installing defective pieces onto Black Hawk helicopters. He previously ran in Florida's 15th Congressional District in 2014 where he lost to incumbent Rep. Dennis Ross by 20.6%. Cohn's campaign platform prioritizes lowering prescription drug prices, reforming the Affordable Care Act, and rolling back Trump's 2018 tax bill.
Franklin is a 26-year US Navy veteran, insurance businessman, and Lakeland City commissioner, a position he was first elected to in 2018. His campaign revolves around standing against Sen. Bernie Sanders and Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez, lowering taxes, and standing against legal abortion.
The district
Florida's 15th Congressional District is located in the center of the state and occupies a swath of land between Tampa and Orlando. The district is home to the northern regions of Hillsborough and Polk counties, the southern edge of Lake County, and the cities of Plant City, Bartow, Lakeland, and Brandon.
The district, which Trump carried by over 10 points in 2016, has not been represented by a Democrat since Rep. Jim Bacchus' retirement in 1995.
The money race
According to the Center for Responsive Politics, Cohn has raised $1.5 million, spent $1.1 million, and has around $412,000 in cash on hand while Franklin has raised $1.1 million, spent around $822,000, and has around $282,728 million in cash on hand as of September 30.
What experts say
The race between Cohn and Franklin is rated as "leans Republican" by Inside Elections, The Cook Political Report, and Sabato's Crystal Ball at the University of Virginia Center for Politics.
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