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Florida general election: November 3, 2026

Who is running for Florida House, District 61 in 2026?

Here are the candidates for Florida House, District 61 on the November 3, 2026 ballot. This race is on the ballot for voters in Florida House District 61.

Positions come only from each candidate's own votes, official actions, statements and questionnaire answers, never from party labels. Every item links to its source.

Side by side

Each candidate's position on the issues this office handles, from their own record. Details and sources are in each profile below.

IssueLinda ChaneyRepublicanMay ThachDemocrat
HealthcareNo public positionKeep the Affordable Care Act and fix what is brokenSaid · medium
AbortionIllegal, except to save the mother's life or in cases of rape or incestVoted · mediumLegal in most cases up to viability (about 24 weeks)Questionnaire answer · low
School choiceYes, universal school choice for every familyVoted · mediumNo public position
Curriculum and booksParents, including the right to remove material they object toVoted · mediumNo public position
Policing and crimeTougher sentences, more police funding, and stricter bailVoted · mediumNo public position
Election rulesStrict photo ID, paper ballots, cleaner voter rolls and fewer mail ballotsVoted · mediumNo public position
Gender care for minorsNo, ban these treatments for minorsVoted · mediumNo public position
RedistrictingState legislatures draw maps and may redraw any time, including for partisan advantageVoted · mediumNo public position
Death penaltyExpand it and use it more often, including for crimes like child rapeVoted · mediumNo public position
Kids onlineBan social media accounts for minorsVoted · mediumNo public position
DEI programsBan DEI offices and required training at public institutionsVoted · mediumNo public position
China policyGet tougher: broad tariffs, state bans on land purchases, and forced app salesVoted · mediumNo public position

Linda Chaney

Republican · Incumbent

Florida House member, District 61

Linda Chaney lives in St. Pete Beach, has a bachelor's degree in communications from the University of South Florida, worked as a marketing director with Home Shopping Network and co-founded Tampa Bay Mobile Mammography1. She has served in the Florida House since 2020, in District 69 and then District 61, and faces Democrat May Thach on November 3, 202612.

Where they stand 16 issues · tap any issue for the evidence

  • AbortionIllegal, except to save the mother's life or in cases of rape or incestmedium
    Voted · medium confidence
    • Voted yes on SB 300 (2023), which banned most abortions after six weeks, with exceptions for rape, incest and trafficking up to 15 weeks and for the mother's life or serious health risk; it passed the House 70 to 40. (2023-04-13) source
    • Voted yes on HB 5 (2022), which banned most abortions after 15 weeks with exceptions for the mother's life or health and fatal fetal conditions but not for rape or incest; it passed the House 78 to 39. (2022-02-17) source
  • School choiceYes, universal school choice for every familymedium
    Voted · medium confidence
    • Voted yes on HB 1 (2023), which made every Florida K-12 student eligible for a state scholarship that can pay for private school or home education; it passed the House 83 to 27. (2023-03-17) source
  • DEI programsBan DEI offices and required training at public institutionsmedium
    Voted · medium confidence
    • Voted yes on HB 7 (2022), the Individual Freedom Act often called the Stop WOKE Act, which restricted how race related concepts can be taught in schools and in workplace training; it passed the House 74 to 41. (2022-02-24) source
  • Gender care for minorsNo, ban these treatments for minorsmedium
    Voted · medium confidence
    • Voted yes on SB 254 (2023), which banned puberty blockers, hormones and surgery for minors as treatment for gender dysphoria; it passed the House 83 to 28. (2023-05-04) source
  • Election rulesStrict photo ID, paper ballots, cleaner voter rolls and fewer mail ballotsmedium
    Voted · medium confidence
    • Voted yes on SB 524 (2022), which created a state election crimes office, expanded voter roll maintenance and raised penalties for collecting others' ballots; it passed the House 76 to 41. (2022-03-09) source
  • Policing and crimeTougher sentences, more police funding, and stricter bailmedium
    Voted · medium confidence
    • Voted yes on HB 1 (2021), which created new crimes and tougher penalties tied to riots and let the state review local cuts to police budgets; it passed the House 76 to 39. (2021-03-26) source
  • Curriculum and booksParents, including the right to remove material they object tomedium
    Voted · medium confidence
    • Voted yes on HB 1467 (2022), which required school districts to post library materials, have certified media specialists review them and give parents a process to object to books; it passed the House 79 to 41. (2022-03-10) source
    • Voted yes on HB 1557 (2022), the Parental Rights in Education law, which barred classroom instruction on sexual orientation or gender identity in kindergarten through third grade; it passed the House 69 to 47. (2022-02-24) source
    • Voted yes on HB 1069 (2023), which extended limits on instruction about sexual orientation and gender identity through eighth grade and expanded the process for parents to object to school library books; it passed the House 77 to 35. (2023-03-31) source
  • Death penaltyExpand it and use it more often, including for crimes like child rapemedium
    Voted · medium confidence
    • Voted yes on HB 1297 (2023), which allows the death penalty for sexual battery of a child under 12; it passed the House 95 to 14. (2023-04-13) source
    • Voted yes on SB 450 (2023), which allows a death sentence when at least 8 of 12 jurors recommend it instead of requiring a unanimous jury; it passed the House 80 to 30. (2023-04-13) source
  • China policyGet tougher: broad tariffs, state bans on land purchases, and forced app salesmedium
    Voted · medium confidence
    • Voted yes on SB 264 (2023), which restricts people and companies from China and several other countries from buying land in Florida, with the strictest limits on China; it passed the House 95 to 17. (2023-05-04) source
  • RedistrictingState legislatures draw maps and may redraw any time, including for partisan advantagemedium
    Voted · medium confidence
    • Voted yes on SB 2-C (2022), which adopted the congressional map proposed by the governor after the 2020 census; it passed the House 68 to 38. (2022-04-21) source
    • Voted yes on HB 1-D (2026), which redrew Florida's congressional districts in the middle of the decade at the governor's request; it passed the House 83 to 28. (2026-04-29) source
  • Kids onlineBan social media accounts for minorsmedium
    Voted · medium confidence
    • Voted yes on HB 1 (2024), which would have barred social media accounts for children under 16; the governor vetoed it and a narrower bill, HB 3, later passed nearly unanimously; it passed the House 106 to 13. (2024-01-24) source
  • ImmigrationNo single answer fitsmedium
    Voted · medium confidence
    • Voted yes on SB 2-C (2025), which created a State Board of Immigration Enforcement, funded local cooperation with federal immigration agents and required local law enforcement to take part; it passed the House 85 to 30. (2025-02-13) source
    • Voted yes on SB 4-C (2025), which created state crimes for entering Florida after entering the country illegally and required those charged to be held without bond; it passed the House 85 to 29. (2025-02-13) source
  • Religion in schoolsNo single answer fitslow
    Voted · low confidence
    • Voted yes on HB 931 (2024), which lets school districts choose to allow volunteer chaplains in schools; it passed the House 89 to 25. (2024-02-22) source
  • Energy and climateNo single answer fitslow
    Voted · low confidence
    • Voted yes on HB 1645 (2024), a broad energy bill that removed most references to climate change from state law, banned offshore wind turbines, eased natural gas pipeline rules and ordered a study of advanced nuclear technology; it passed the House 81 to 29. (2024-03-07) source
  • E-Verify mandateNo single answer fitslow
    Voted · low confidence
    • Voted yes on SB 1718 (2023), which required private employers with 25 or more workers to use E-Verify, created penalties for transporting people who entered the country illegally, and voided out of state driver licenses issued to people without legal status; it passed the House 83 to 36. (2023-05-02) source
  • GunsNo single answer fitslow
    Voted · low confidence
    • Voted yes on HB 759 (2025), which would have lowered the minimum age to buy a rifle or shotgun from 21 to 18; it died in the Senate; it passed the House 78 to 34. (2025-03-26) source
    • Voted no on HB 133 (2026), which would have lowered the minimum age to buy a rifle or shotgun from 21 to 18; it died in the Senate; it passed the House 74 to 37. (2026-01-15) source

No public position found on: Safety net programs, Minimum wage, Business regulation, Healthcare, Housing and growth, Judges, Politicians trading stocks, Marijuana, Term limits, Campaign finance, Electoral College, Ranked-choice voting, Qualified immunity, Mandatory minimums, Drug prices, Childcare and pre-K, Paid leave, Student loans, AI regulation, School vaccines, Nuclear power, Transgender athletes.

May Thach

Democrat

Private citizen

May Thach, whose family immigrated to the United States in 1999 and settled in St. Petersburg, earned a bachelor's degree from the University of South Florida and a graduate degree from the University of California San Diego School of Global Policy and Strategy, and works as a nonprofit professional1. She faces incumbent Republican Linda Chaney for Florida House District 61 on November 3, 202612.

Where they stand 2 issues · tap any issue for the evidence

  • HealthcareKeep the Affordable Care Act and fix what is brokenmedium
    Said · medium confidence
    • Her campaign site says she supports expanding Medicaid, keeping politicians out of private healthcare decisions and making access to care affordable and transparent. (2026) source
  • AbortionLegal in most cases up to viability (about 24 weeks)low
    Questionnaire answer · low confidence
    • In her 2026 Ballotpedia survey she listed protection of and access to reproductive services as a policy priority and said her campaign is guided by the reproductive justice framework. (2026-08) source
    • Her campaign site says she supports keeping politicians out of private healthcare decisions. (2026) source

No public position found on: Safety net programs, Minimum wage, Business regulation, Guns, Immigration, Energy and climate, School choice, Curriculum and books, Housing and growth, Policing and crime, Election rules, Judges, Politicians trading stocks, Marijuana, Gender care for minors, Redistricting, Term limits, Campaign finance, Electoral College, Ranked-choice voting, Death penalty, Qualified immunity, Mandatory minimums, Drug prices, Childcare and pre-K, Paid leave, Student loans, AI regulation, Kids online, School vaccines, Nuclear power, E-Verify mandate, Transgender athletes, DEI programs, Religion in schools, China policy.

Last reviewed 2026-10-06. Spotted something wrong? Every claim links to its source so you can check it yourself.