Democratic socialist Angie Nixon won a surprise victory in Florida's Senate Democratic primary on Tuesday, throwing a big curveball into a contest in which Republican incumbent Sen. Ashley Moody is heavily favored in November.

Nixon, 42, a Jacksonville state representative, secured 56% of the vote compared with 44% for retired Lt. Col. Alex Vindman, who significantly outraised her and had national name recognition as a figure in President Trump's first impeachment.

"We have proved that everyday people are more powerful than the corporations and billionaires," she said in her victory speech. "This win is for the little guys and girls."

Moody, the Trump-endorsed former Florida attorney general, was appointed by Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis last year after Marco Rubio resigned to become U.S. Secretary of State. Following Tuesday's results, election analysts at Sabato's Crystal Ball moved the race from "likely Republican" to "safe Republican," seeing Nixon as a weaker candidate for the Democrats.

Here's what to know about Nixon.

She campaigned on affordability and healthcare access

Nixon ran on a platform advocating Medicare for All and a federal minimum wage of $25 an hour. She also supports a billionaire tax, free child care and a national rent freeze.

"Healthcare is a right and we need to treat it as such and that's the number one priority for me when I head to the United States Senate," she told Fox 35 in Orlando, Fla., this week.

She made headlines in the statehouse

Nixon was elected to the statehouse in 2020. She introduced a Gaza ceasefire bill in 2023 that was defeated by a vote of 104 to 2.

She protested the GOP-led redistricting in Florida earlier this year by marching through the legislative chamber and shouting into a pink bullhorn. She was arrested for sitting in DeSantis's office to protest the redistricting. She faces two misdemeanor charges over her governor's office protest and is due in court next month, according to local court records.

She protested similar redistricting efforts in 2022.

She ran her U.S. Senate campaign on a tight budget

Nixon raised just $975,000, according to federal campaign filings, well short of the $16.3 million taken in by Vindman. Heading into election night, she was seen as a heavy underdog, with prediction market Kalshi having her chances at less than 10% until results started coming in.

"I've been traveling all across the state of Florida in my own personal vehicle, sometimes sleeping on my friends and family's couches so that I can talk to as many voters and as many Floridians as possible," she told Fox 35.

She was endorsed by House progressives including Reps. Ilhan Omar of Minnesota, Rashida Tlaib of Michigan, Ayanna Pressley of Massachusetts and Maxwell Frost of Florida. Vindman declined offers to debate Nixon during the campaign.

She was bused to elementary school

Nixon's mother worked two jobs to take care of her and her brother when they were growing up, she said on her campaign website.

She grew up in a predominantly Black neighborhood and was bused to an elementary school across town with more resources, her campaign website said. She said her favorite cousin died due to gun violence.

Nixon runs a bookstore in Jacksonville called Cafe Resistance that spotlights titles by Black authors. She graduated from the University of Florida with a degree in Political Science. She is married and has two children, according to a biography on her state representative webpage.

She is a former community organizer

Nixon said on her campaign website that she was the executive director of Florida for All, a coalition of organizations that has worked on issues including voting rights and increasing affordable housing.

She joined the Democratic Socialists of America earlier this year. She was an adviser to former Democratic state Rep. Mia Jones, whom she still considers a mentor.