Alex Vindman hasn’t decided whether to debate Angie Nixon

With just over a month until the Aug. 18 Democratic Senate Primary, Lt. Col. Alex Vindman’s campaign still hasn’t decided whether to hold a Primary debate with state Rep. Angie Nixon.

“We’re happy to let you know the second we make a decision,” said Campaign Manager Blakely Wall, who handled Q&A exclusively during a media call, with Vindman’s participation limited to opening remarks.

The campaign was asked about internal polling in the Primary race, but did not provide even a topline during the availability.

Nixon, who has pushed for a debate for months, reacted to the comments, telling Florida Politics that a “Primary debate isn’t optional” and that it’s a “job interview with the voters.”

“If my opponent doesn’t have the courage to stand on a stage and defend his vision, how can we expect him to take on the Republican machine in November?”

As she has before, Nixon said her team has “heard from various groups all over the state that (Vindman) has stopped communicating with them about coming to meetings, ran the clock out on debates or forums, screened questions before answering, snuck into and out of back doors to avoid speaking to Floridians, and more.”

Wall said even if there isn’t a Primary debate, the campaign believes Vindman will unite Democrats and won’t underperform the way Val Demings did when she refused to debate opponents before a loss to Marco Rubio in a previous cycle.

“First and foremost, we are not taking a single voter for granted in this campaign, both in the Primary and the General Election. We know that victory means uniting everybody and making sure that Alex is connecting with Democrats, independents, Republicans across the entire political spectrum.”

Wall acknowledged “scar tissue” exists among Democrats, but expressed confidence that 2026 is a “completely different cycle than we’ve seen in Florida in the past,” particularly given that Moody, in the campaign’s view, is “no Marco Rubio or Rick Scott.”

“She’s never run a real campaign,” Wall said about the former Attorney General, former federal Judge and Plant City native who outperformed Gov. Ron DeSantis on both the 2018 and 2022 ballots.

While Vindman’s team believes it has a strategy for November, Nixon is more skeptical that it can be executed under the current plan.

“You don’t earn people’s support by treating them as an afterthought and assuming they will blindly fall in line. You earn it by showing up, answering the tough questions, and making your case directly to the community. That is what real leadership looks like, and that is what Floridians deserve,” the Jacksonville Democrat said.