Democrat defeats embattled Rep. Rivera in Florida House Race

Democrat Joe Garcia defeated Republican Rep. David Rivera in the race for Florida's 26th Congressional District, according to election projections from multiple news sources.

Rivera defeated Garcia by nearly 10 points in 2010, and was an early favorite in the race this time around. But polling turned sour for Rivera after investigations into the possibility that he ran a shadow campaign in support of Garcia's challenger became a focal point of the race.

The investigations blanketed papers in the region, and local Republicans reportedly began to mull potential GOP candidates for a 2014 run to take back the seat, considering Rivera already finished.

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