The Weekly Wrap-Up: Nov. 2–8, 2026

The week Florida went one way and the country went the other. Here is everything FMNN reported from Nov. 2 to Nov. 8, in one place.

By Joseph Jackson | TAMPA (Nov. 8, 2026)

The short version

• Democrats swept the midterms nationally. In Florida, they broke the GOP's state House supermajority while being outspent more than 6 to 1, and Amendment 3's property tax cut passed.

• Trump's first moves after the wipeout: Stephen Miller as chief of staff, an order for the Justice Department to "look into" Democrats, and talk of replacing Pete Hegseth with Ron DeSantis.

• AI stocks lost trillions as investors questioned the money moving in a circle among a few companies.

• In Tampa Bay: health insurance prices up again for 2027, Geico cuts in Lakeland, and Ybor City marks one year since a deadly crash.

Election week

• The Election Night Playbook: what Trump's camp had already tried

• Outspent more than 6 to 1, Florida Democrats still broke the GOP's House supermajority

• "My heart is broken": Florida Library Association vows to fight on after Amendment 3 passes · Can Florida stop Amendment 3? The real options, and the odds

• Texas turns blue: Talarico wins the Senate seat and Hinojosa ousts Abbott

• Keisha Lance Bottoms becomes the first Black woman elected governor of Georgia

• Abdul El-Sayed beats Mike Rogers and becomes the first Muslim U.S. senator

• Navy admiral Hegseth fired wins Nancy Mace's House seat

• Trump says he accepts the results. His Justice Department is still fighting two of them.

Washington after the wave

• Trump names Stephen Miller chief of staff; Susie Wiles out

• Impeach Hegseth? Here's the bill: $47.1 billion, 18 dead, 81 aircraft

• Trump weighs replacing Hegseth with DeSantis as the impeachment vote nears

• Trump orders DOJ to "look into" Democrats planning oversight probes

• "Lawyer up": incoming Democratic chairs name their targets

• Democrats' first votes: health care, the Iran war and Trump's tariffs

• The Harvest Plan: money first, laws in 2029

• Trump offers the press secretary job to UFC's Dana White

• Judge blocks Trump's 250-foot arch for 14 days

Florida

• Up to 22 inches of rain on election eve. DeSantis declared an emergency late.

• DeSantis is planning a 2028 run, the Post reports. He calls it fabricated.

• ICE Does Melt: a viral lawyer says prosecutions of immigration agents are coming

• While the captain prayed, the 20-year-old co-pilot stayed composed

Tampa Bay

• One year after the Ybor City crash, families push to change police chases

• Florida health insurance for 2027: prices up again. Your deadlines and free help

• Geico will cut 114 jobs tied to its Lakeland office

• Republicans wrote Hillsborough's new map rule. Democrats will draw it.

• Welch has until Jan. 7. Will his Gas Plant pick survive Crist?

• Tampa Bay events calendar: November and December · Shopapalooza at Vinoy Park · Small Business Saturday

• The Daily Recap, Tampa Bay Edition (Sunday)

Money and power

• The AI Money Loop: trillions lost as the same few firms pay each other

• The Subsidy King, a five-part series on Elon Musk: Part 1 · Part 2 · Part 3 · Part 4 · Part 5

Opinion

• Four days after the wipeout, Trump is swinging at everyone

• The midterm message was "Stop." Trump just promoted the man who won't.

• Impeach Pete Hegseth. Then prosecute him.

• Democrats won the Senate. Their leaders blew the 60.

• The rest of the country got the blue wave. Florida got the red tide.

• Florida is for sale, and Byron Donalds just became the closing agent

• AIPAC spent $104 million on the midterms. Its biggest bet just lost.

Every story above links to its own sources. Opinion pieces are labeled as opinion.

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