A judge in Florida appointed by Gov. Ron DeSantis has been ousted by voters following his high-profile decision in an abortion case earlier this year. Back in January, Hillsborough County Circuit Court Judge Jared Smith denied a 17-year-old access to an abortion, citing her 2.0 GPA as the reason for his decision. Despite numerous major endorsements, Smith lost his seat on the bench to opponent Nancy Jacobs this week. The two opponents came neck and neck in the race, with Jacobs beating the incumbent by just 3.7 percentage points, approximately 7,900 votes. Hillsborough County voted for President Biden by a margin of 7 percent in 2020, according to the county’s election data. The results are likely to be encouraging to Democratic leaders who hope that more primary results will be influenced by the recent Supreme Court decision stripping women of their constitutional right to abortion.
