Blue wave? Not in Florida as Ron DeSantis, GOP keep state red

Republicans scored key victories in Florida as Ron DeSantis won the governor race and the party won two of three Cabinet races and led in the third. The Senate race between Gov. Rick Scott incumbent U.S. Sen. Bill Nelson was too close to call and appeared headed for a mandatory recount. Read more from the AP, CNBC, the Times/Herald and the Orlando Sentinel.

See also:
» 10 things we learned from Florida’s midterm elections
» How Ron DeSantis won Florida governor
» It rained hard on Andrew Gillum’s election night
» Bill Nelson, last Democrat standing in Florida politics, has yet to concede
» How Duval, a conservative county, turned purple with a shade of blue in 2018

Florida House races help determine control in DC

Democrat Debbie Mucarsel-Powell edged out two-term Republican Congressman Carlos Curbelo for the District 26 seat, which is made up of Southwest Miami-Dade County and all of Monroe County. Meanwhile, Donna Shalala, a former University of Miami president, captured the District 27 seat long held by Republican Congressman Ileana Ros-Lehtinen. [Source: AP]

See also:
» Key West elects the first openly lesbian mayor in Florida history

Here’s how Floridians voted on the 12 constitutional amendments

Faced with the longest list of proposed constitutional changes in two decades, Floridians voted Tuesday to approve 11 of 12 constitutional amendments on the midterm ballot, clearing the 60 percent threshold required to pass. Only Amendment 1 fell short of the votes needed to enact it. See the full results on the amendments here and read more from the Miami Herald and WINK News.

Your turn:
» Are you satisfied with Florida's midterm election results? (quick poll)

World's largest cruise ship, Symphony of the Seas, to make its U.S. debut in Florida

The world's largest cruise ship will be making its U.S. debut Thursday at Port Canaveral before sailing to its home port of Miami. The ship — Royal Caribbean's Symphony of the Seas — has a capacity of 6,680 passengers and 2,200 cruise members. It cost more than $1 billion to build. [Source: Florida Today]

Why won’t red tide go away? After Hurricane Michael, toxic algae has again spread

In the weeks following the storm, red tide that is already considered the worst in a decade has roared back. On Monday, state wildlife officials logged high to medium levels along beaches from Clearwater to waters off Everglades City and in the Panhandle. Fish kills were reported in nine counties from the Panhandle around the tip of the state to the Space Coast. [Source: Miami Herald]

ALSO AROUND FLORIDA:

› Orange County hotel tax revenue up 8.6 percent for fiscal year [Orlando Sentinel]
Even though Orange County hotel tax revenue didn’t jump significantly in September, the 2018 fiscal year still ended on top of 2017 by 8.6 percent, according to the latest numbers.

› Poynter Institute reports higher revenues, assets in 2017 [Tampa Bay Times]
The Poynter Institute, the journalism institute that owns the Tampa Bay Times, reported an increase in revenues and assets in 2017. In a return filed with the Internal Revenue Service, the nonprofit organization said revenues rose 2 percent to $6.06 million while net assets rose less than 1 percent to about $39.8 million.

› Gainesville sees uptick in home renovation [Gainesville Sun]
In a time when new construction in many parts of Gainesville and the surrounding area seems like a given, many local families are turning to renovations instead, even when these renovations end up more costly than a new home itself. Why? Because they cannot build anything new in their location.

› Controversial paid parking coming back to downtown Sarasota [Sarasota Herald-Tribune]
Controversial paid parking is making a comeback to downtown several years after protests from merchants who decried the meters, claiming they are business killers. The Sarasota City Commission narrowly approved the implementation of paid parking to balance a projected $633,912 deficit the parking division’s budget is facing this fiscal year.

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› Lecanto High School art students chosen to represent Florida for National Christmas Tree [Citrus County Chronicle]
Of all the schools in Florida, Lecanto High School was chosen to represent the state this year by creating ornaments that will accompany the 2018 National Christmas Tree on the Ellipse in President’s Park in Washington, D.C.

› UCF researcher will use Blue Origin rocket to study dust clouds in low-gravity environment [Orlando Sentinel]
A UCF researcher’s experiment will hitch a ride into areas of space with low gravity on a Blue Origin rocket. Julie Brisset, an associate scientist at the school’s Florida Space Institute, recently landed a $250,000 NASA grant to study how microgravity affects dust clouds.

› Roofing company faces $113,000 fine after repeated ‘willful’ worker safety violation [Miami Herald]
A federal inspection of a Panama City Framing work site has resulted in a third citation in three years for not protecting workers on a roof from falling, and failing to do so willingly.

› Brits urged to experience Florida beyond core favorites [Travel Weekly]
Florida is encouraging UK travellers to “take an adventure” in the state and extend their stay beyond core favorites such as Orlando and Miami. Visit Florida has produced a video featuring local people reciting a poem to showcase ‘secondary’ destinations such as Kennedy Space Centre and Sarasota.