By Dave Goldiner November 7, 2018

Democrat David Shapiro lost to a Republican incumbent on Florida’s Gulf Coast.

Shapiro was trailing by 53-to-46% margin to Vern Buchanan, a six-term incumbent who had rarely faced serious challenges in the past.

Both Shapiro and Lauren Baer north of Palm Beach were given only an outside chance at winning and both races were rated Lean Republican by most analysts.

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But the early results could help the GOP breathe easy that the vaunted #BlueWave may be just as powerful as it feared.

Shapiro was considered a long shot to take out Buchanan, who has rarely had a competitive race in his 12 years in office. Buchanan’s 16th District also covers a much more GOP-friendly swath of the Gulf Coast, although it includes liberal beach communities and the cities of Sarasota and Bradenton.

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