Tina Polsky won’t seek re-election in November, opening Senate seat

As Florida Politics forecasted earlier this month, Boca Raton Democratic Sen. Tina Scott Polsky has decided to call it a day, for now.

Polsky, who spent the better part of a decade representing Broward and Palm Beach counties in the Legislature — including four years apiece in the House and Senate — confirmed this week that she will forgo seeking another term representing Senate District 30.

“Eight years ago, I came to Tallahassee with a simple belief: Government should work for people, not the other way around,” she said in a statement announcing her decision.

“I am proud of what we have accomplished together, the lives we have impacted and the progress we have made for families across Florida.”

She did not say whether she intends to run for another office, only that she plans to continue advocating publicly for issues she’s championed, from gun safety and abortion access to medical, marriage, voting and women’s rights.

“In the months between now and November, she intends to focus on electing a Democratic Governor and supporting Democratic candidates up and down the ballot,” a press note from her office said.

No Democrat has filed yet to run for SD 30, which covers part of Boca Raton in Palm Beach County and all or part of Coconut Creek, Coral Springs, Deerfield Beach, Lighthouse Point, Margate, North Lauderdale, Parkland and Pompano Beach in Broward.

But there are a few likely contenders.

Florida Politics reported May 7 that Polsky was planning to exit the Legislature and former Senate Democratic Leader Lauren Book intended to run to succeed her.

Coral Springs Rep. Dan Daley said Tuesday, shortly after Polsky announced her planned departure, that he has long planned to run for SD 30 and is now taking a “serious look” at doing so, but is speaking with “supporters, community leaders, and residents throughout the district before making any decisions.”

“I’ve spent years preparing for the possibility of running for this Senate seat because this community is my home,” he said. “I’ve represented part of it as an elected official since 2012, passing laws focused on keeping our community safe and securing more than 440 million for local projects critical to our continued growth and wellbeing.”

Daley added that he was aware of “a lot happening behind the scenes surrounding recent campaign announcements.”

“I think the residents I’ve worked alongside over the years deserve transparency and honesty about the future of this district,” he said. “With (Polsky) now confirming she will not seek re-election, it’s time for a different conversation.”

Book, a nonprofit leader who represented parts of Broward in what is now Senate District 37 from 2016 to 2024, is currently filed to run for Senate again in 2028. She told Florida Politics this month that she was having “conversations with people encouraging” her to consider a run for Congress.

She did not, however, deny she was also eyeing SD 30.

Were she to run and win, Book — who previously served in nearby Senate District 35, where she still lives in Davie — would ultimately have to move across county lines.

Daley, meanwhile, lives in Coral Springs, which sits wholly within SD 30.

Republican Jerusa Zitta, who filed to run for SD 30 on Jan. 22 and raised $4,350 last quarter — most of it self-given or from family members — is now the district’s only active candidate.

The Primary is Aug. 18, followed by the General Election on Nov. 3.