Former Miami-Dade County School Board member Lucía Báez-Geller is running to unseat Republican state Rep. Fabián Basabe in Florida House District 106. The coastal district stretches from Aventura and Sunny Isles Beach south to Miami Beach and Fisher Island.

Báez-Geller won the Democratic primary Aug. 18 with 57% of the vote, defeating Ashley Litwin Diego. She now faces Basabe, who won the seat by 240 votes in 2022 and held it by about 4 percentage points in 2024.

Jury verdict and failed post-trial motions

On July 15, a Leon County jury found Basabe liable for sexual harassment, battery and defamation. Jurors deliberated about two hours before awarding $450,000 in damages to former aide Nicolas Frevola and former intern Jacob Cutbirth.

Basabe represented himself at trial, rested his case without calling a witness and has denied wrongdoing. He later hired attorney Peter Ticktin to seek a new trial and to disqualify the judge. Every motion failed, Florida Politics reported. Basabe had 30 days from the Aug. 20 final judgment to file a notice of appeal. [VERIFY: see fact check]

"I think the residents of 106 are ready to turn the page on all the chaos, all the confusion, all the scandals," Báez-Geller told WPLG Local 10 in an interview that aired Monday.

Basabe, who has called the case politically motivated, told WPLG he had "made a lot of really powerful enemies" and described the lawsuit as "lawfare" and "character assassination."

Local officials withdraw their support

Five of the seven Miami Beach commissioners called for Basabe's resignation after the verdict. Surfside Commissioner Ruben Coto, Bal Harbour Council Member Buzzy Sklar and Sunny Isles Beach Commissioner Alex Lama all rescinded their endorsements, according to Florida Politics.

Báez-Geller taught at Miami Beach Senior High School from 2005 to 2020 before she was elected to the Miami-Dade County School Board, where she represented District 3 from November 2020 to November 2024. She left the board to challenge U.S. Rep. María Elvira Salazar in 2024 and lost.

Fundraising, party backing and a shifting district

Báez-Geller had raised more than $334,000 for the contest and had just under $48,000 on hand, according to a Sept. 3 WLRN report on campaign finance filings. Basabe had raised about $100,000 through his campaign account and the political committee Common Sense For Florida, with few contributions since late June.

The Florida Democratic Party and the Democratic Legislative Campaign Committee have both targeted the race. This week, the state party added Báez-Geller to its Take Back Florida Distinction program, a slate of 14 candidates.

District 106 has swung in recent cycles. President Donald Trump carried it by 9 points in 2024, four years after former President Joe Biden won it by 10 points.

The general election is Nov. 3.