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2026 candidates we're tracking in FL-18
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Curtis Gibson
Democratic
Curtis Gibson, a former two-time Lake Wales city commissioner who manages Eagle Ridge Mall in Lake Wales, is a candidate for Florida's 18th Congressional District, per LakeWalesNews.net and Yahoo News. Curtis Gibson appears on the November 3, 2026 ballot as the Democratic nominee for FL-18, per the Florida Division of Elections certified candidate list. No campaign website was found as of September 3, 2026; the state's certified candidate filing is the only verifiable source for Curtis Gibson.
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Scott Franklin
Republican
Incumbent
A 1986 U.S. Naval Academy graduate, Scott Franklin flew combat missions as a naval aviator across 26 years of active and reserve service before running an insurance business in Lakeland for two decades, per his campaign site. He was first elected to Congress in 2020 and is now in his third term, and that site lists him as vice chair of the House Appropriations subcommittee covering agriculture, rural development and the Food and Drug Administration. It also says he chairs the Environment Subcommittee of the House Science, Space, and Technology Committee and serves on the Military Construction and Veterans Affairs and Energy and Water Development subcommittees.
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Deva Simmons
No Party Affil
Deva Simmons, an educator with more than 20 years in the field, is running for Florida's 18th Congressional District as a no-party-affiliation candidate, per her campaign site. A Brooklyn native who relocated to Florida in 1995, she has lived in Polk County since 2002 and serves on the board of the Boys & Girls Club of Lakeland, per her campaign site. Deva Simmons appears on the November 3, 2026 ballot as a no-party-affiliation candidate for FL-18, per the Florida Division of Elections certified candidate list.
About this race
Florida's 18th Congressional District elects one member of the U.S. House of Representatives to a two-year term. Every House seat in the country is on the ballot in 2026. The Florida primary is Tuesday, August 18, 2026, and the general election is Tuesday, November 3, 2026.