Florida Democratic Senate Nominee Nixon Clarifies Position on Democratic Socialists Membership

Democratic Senate nominee Angie Nixon pushed back Thursday against characterizations of her political ideology, appearing on “Meet the Press NOW” to clarify her reasons for joining the Democratic Socialists of America while distancing herself from several of the organization’s core policy positions. Host Kristen Welker questioned why Nixon joined an organization whose platform calls for eliminating the U.S. Senate, the very office she is seeking.

Nixon cited four specific reasons for her DSA membership: support for public housing development, advocacy for healthcare access, assistance for homeless veterans, and efforts to reduce corporate money’s influence in politics. She explicitly rejected incumbent Republican Sen. Ashley Moody’s characterization of her as a socialist, stating that Moody “knows that I’m not a socialist.”

The DSA’s national platform includes proposals to abolish the Senate, draft a new Constitution, eliminate the Department of War, end sanctions on countries including Iran, and establish public ownership of major corporations and essential industries. Nixon rejected the proposals to abolish the Senate and create a new Constitution, and stated she opposes military defunding, though she advocated for increased scrutiny of defense spending.

When pressed about lifting sanctions on Iran, Nixon declined to directly answer. She said: “I don’t believe in defunding anything. I think we need to make sure that we are scrutinizing them, and we need to make sure we’re spending money the right way.”

The Republican National Committee seized on Nixon’s DSA affiliation to criticize Democrats nationally. RNC spokeswoman Emma Hall claimed in a Friday statement to Fox News Digital that “Socialist lunatic Angie Nixon wants to empty our prisons, open our borders, and raise your taxes to bankroll their far-left agenda,” calling her words “an in-kind contribution to Republicans in Florida and across the country.”

When Welker asked whether Nixon considers herself a capitalist—a question arising after fellow Democratic nominee David Jolly identified as one—Nixon responded affirmatively. “I live in a capitalistic society. I’m a small business owner. I like to make money. I don’t see what the problem is,” she said. “I’m a capitalist who believes that we need some strong regulation.”

Nixon’s campaign platform includes Medicare-for-all, free child care, a national rent freeze, an eviction moratorium, a universal jobs program, and abolishing Immigration and Customs Enforcement. She characterized the focus on her DSA membership as a distraction from substantive policy issues affecting Florida voters.

Moody, appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis to replace Marco Rubio after Rubio became Secretary of State, has escalated her criticism of Nixon. In recent media appearances, including Wednesday on Fox News’ “Hannity,” Moody described the general election as a conflict against Nixon and what she termed her “comrades,” claiming they “want to destroy this country and everything that it is built on.”

Nixon advanced to face Moody after defeating former National Security Council official Alexander Vindman by nearly 12 percentage points in the Democratic primary, despite being outspent roughly 16-to-1. The November winner will serve the final two years of Rubio’s term.