Trump impeachment whistleblower Vindman launches Democratic Senate run in Florida

By Fox News · Fox News

Alexander Vindman, the one-time National Security Council (NSC) aide whose testimony before Congress fueled the first impeachment of President Donald Trump , on Tuesday announced he's launching a Democratic Senate campaign in Trump's adopted home state of Florida. Vindman, a retired Army lieutenant colonel, is aiming to challenge GOP Sen. Ashley Moody , who was appointed last year by Florida Gov. Ron DeSantis to fill the Senate seat left vacant when then-Sen. Marco Rubio stepped down to serve as Secretary of State in Trump's second administration. Republicans are defending their 53-47 Senate majority in this year's midterm elections, and the 2026 Senate race in GOP-dominated Florida, which Trump carried by 13 points in 2024, was not considered a top target for Democrats. But Vindman's campaign launch could give Democrats a known candidate who would likely bring national attention to the race. Vindman, who was born in then-Soviet-controlled Ukraine, was in the spotlight as he testified in front of Congress about Trump's infamous 2019 call with Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky that ultimately led to the Democrat-controlled House impeaching the president. Trump was later acquitted by the Senate. FIRED UNDER TRUMP, FORMER MILITARY OFFICERS LAUNCH DEMOCRATIC BIDS FOR CONGRESS A combat veteran, Vindman was subsequently fired from his position with the NSC. He became a vocal Trump critic and later wrote two books and worked as a senior adviser for VoteVets, a Democrat-aligned group that helps to elect veterans. "I stepped up when my country needed a soldier, I reported corruption at the highest levels of government, and now I’m stepping up again to fight for Floridians," Vindman said in a social media post. FIRST ON FOX: MICHELE TAFOYA LAUNCHES GOP BID TO TRY AND FLIP BLUE SENATE SEAT IN MINNESOTA And spotlighting his past clash with Trump, Vindman charged in his video that "this president unleashed a reign of terror and retribution, not just against me and my famil…