Florida Supreme Court Reverses Decision, Allows Mayfield to Run for Senate District 19

Palm Bay, Fla. – In a unanimous ruling, the Florida Supreme Court has overturned the state’s decision to disqualify former state Sen. Debbie Mayfield, allowing her to run in the special election for Senate District 19. The court’s decision, issued late Thursday, reverses the Florida Department of State’s initial ruling that Mayfield was ineligible due to term limits.

Mayfield, a longtime Republican legislator, served eight years in the Senate from 2016 to 2024 before being term-limited out. She then won a seat in the Florida House of Representatives for District 32 but resigned in an attempt to reclaim her former Senate position following the resignation of Sen. Randy Fine, R-Melbourne Beach. Fine, who was elected to Mayfield’s former Senate seat in 2024, stepped down to run for Congress in Florida’s 6th Congressional District, which includes Daytona Beach and five other counties. Fine won the Republican nomination for the congressional seat and will compete in the April 1 special election for that position.

The Florida Division of Elections initially barred Mayfield from the Senate District 19 race, citing Florida’s constitutional term limit rules. However, the Supreme Court found that because Mayfield had a break in service after leaving the Senate, she did not violate the consecutive eight-year service limit. Justice Jamie Grosshans, writing for the court, stated that “Mayfield experienced a break in service when her Senate term ended in November 2024,” which resets the clock on her consecutive years of service.

“If the people of Florida want other limitations on the time their elected officials may serve, they can incorporate such language explicitly through the constitutional amendment process,” Grosshans wrote. “Until they choose to do so, we cannot read a prohibition into the Constitution that does not exist.”

The ruling means Mayfield will now officially appear on the ballot for the April 1 Republican primary, where she will face Marcie Adkins of Grant-Valkaria, Mark Lightner III of Suntree, and Tim Thomas of Melbourne. The winner of that contest will then compete against Democrat Vance Ahrens of West Melbourne in the June 10 special general election.

In the lead-up to the Supreme Court’s decision, state officials argued that there was insufficient time to add Mayfield to the ballot before the Feb. 14 deadline for sending vote-by-mail ballots to military and overseas voters. Attorneys for Florida Secretary of State Cord Byrd contended that Mayfield should have challenged her disqualification sooner, stating in a legal brief that she “had Thanksgiving, Christmas, and New Year’s to think about her candidacy” but did not take legal action until after the state had already acted.

The state’s argument also emphasized that the Secretary of State had a duty to uphold election laws, comparing Mayfield’s situation to an ineligible non-U.S. citizen or a convicted felon attempting to qualify for the ballot. The attorneys argued that term limits should apply regardless of an individual’s break in service, contending that Mayfield had waited too long to mount her challenge.

Mayfield, however, maintained that her disqualification was an overreach, arguing that the Department of State has a purely ministerial role in processing election paperwork and does not have the authority to remove candidates. The Supreme Court ultimately ruled in her favor, allowing her to remain in the race.

Mayfield’s return to the race reshapes the Republican primary, which had previously been set without her on the ballot. Following the court’s ruling, Fine expressed his support for Mayfield, stating on X, “I am thrilled the Supreme Court repudiated the ‘lawfare’ against her unanimously. Debbie stood with President Trump last year, and I know she will be a tireless fighter for his agenda in Florida.”

Election officials have confirmed that the ruling allows them to proceed as scheduled with mailing vote-by-mail ballots to overseas and military voters, followed by a mass mailing to other Republican voters on February 27.

With the Supreme Court’s ruling now final, all four Republican candidates, including Mayfield, remain in contention for the GOP nomination in what is expected to be a closely watched race. The ruling also sets a precedent for how Florida’s term limits law may be interpreted in future election cycles, particularly regarding breaks in service between terms.