Alexander Hazen
Alexander Hazen (Democratic Party) (also known as Alex) ran for election to the U.S. House to represent Florida's 5th Congressional District. He lost in the Democratic primary on August 18, 2026.
Hazen completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2026. Click here to read the survey answers.
Biography
Alexander Hazen earned a bachelor's degree from the Rochester Institute of Technology in 2019. His career experience includes working as a software developer.[1]
Elections
2026
See also: Florida's 5th Congressional District election, 2026
Florida's 5th Congressional District election, 2026 (August 18 Democratic primary)
Florida's 5th Congressional District election, 2026 (August 18 Republican primary)
General election
The general election will occur on November 3, 2026.
The candidate list in this election may not be complete.
General election for U.S. House Florida District 5
Incumbent John Rutherford (R), Rachel Grage (D), and William Upham (No Party Affiliation) are running in the general election for U.S. House Florida District 5 on November 3, 2026.
Candidate | ||
 | John Rutherford (R) | |
 | Rachel Grage (D)  | |
| William Upham (No Party Affiliation) (Write-in) | ||
| ||||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Democratic primary
Democratic primary for U.S. House Florida District 5
Rachel Grage (D) defeated Alexander Hazen (D) and Mark Heggestad (D) in the Democratic primary for U.S. House Florida District 5 on August 18, 2026.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Rachel Grage | 65.1 | 27,165 |
 | Alexander Hazen | 21.6 | 9,019 | |
 | Mark Heggestad | 13.3 | 5,560 | |
| Total votes: 41,744 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Wyatt Clark (D)
- Eli Johnson (D)
- Antonio Merrick (D)
- John Todd (D)
Republican primary
Republican primary for U.S. House Florida District 5
Incumbent John Rutherford (R) defeated Mark Kaye (R) in the Republican primary for U.S. House Florida District 5 on August 18, 2026.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | John Rutherford | 67.7 | 53,520 |
 | Mark Kaye | 32.3 | 25,533 | |
| Total votes: 79,053 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- Gary Koniz (R)
- Donald Muirheid (R)
- Brandon Veazey (R)
Endorsements
Alexander Hazen received the following endorsements. To send us additional endorsements, click here.
- Democratic Environmental Caucus of Florida
- Florida + Nationwide Voter Guide by Sara Wiles (Sway voting group by Sara Wiles)
- Jess’s Progressive Picks (Sway voting group by Jess Craven)
- Mamdanification (Sway voting group by Hunter Dunn and Smallplates)
- The Chaos Caucus (Sway voting group by Amanda Informed)
Campaign themes
2026
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Alexander Hazen completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2026. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Hazen's responses.
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Hi there! I’m Alex Hazen, a 29-year-old healthcare simulation and video game developer originally from Wilmington, Delaware. I received my Bachelor of Science in (Video) Game Design and Development from the Rochester Institute of Technology, where I learned how to code and develop software. Today I work as a principal software developer on healthcare simulations that help train nurses to save lives. I deeply understand the challenges and opportunities of this new technological era, better than most, and want to help create and shape policies that embrace innovation while protecting our youth, our minds, our privacy, and our future.
I’ve spent my entire professional career in Florida and moved to Jacksonville to start a family with my fiancée who is a 4th generation Jacksonvillian. I’m running for Congress because the cost of living and the direction of this country has made the dream of starting and raising a family increasingly harder to reach.
I’m not a career politician, I’m not taking money from corporations, and I know it’s important to fight for the everyday people of this district. It's time for Northeast Florida to have a new generation of leadership, one that reflects everyday working people. And I am willing to fight for bold, progressive policies that will help make life more affordable and secure for the working people of this district.
- Affordability: Everyday Floridians can’t keep up with rising costs. I support expanding affordable healthcare access, including lowering the Medicare eligibility age. We deserve affordable healthcare for all. I’ll fight for smart infill housing development that doesn’t fuel Florida’s overdevelopment crisis. And I’ll push for real homeowner’s and auto insurance reform, because families in Florida pay for some of the highest premiums in the country while insurers keep raising rates and denying claims.
Institutional Reform: Our government no longer represents the people it serves. I support uncapping the House of Representatives so districts reflect actual population growth, term limits to end career politicians, and Supreme Court reforms including term limits for justices and stronger ethics enforcement. I'll fight to get corporate money out of politics and ensure our government is accountable to people, not donors.
- Tech Regulation: AI and social media are reshaping our society without real oversight. We need more people who understand technology in Congress. I support stronger worker protections so AI is used as a tool, not a replacement for people. I’ll push for common sense federal reforms banning social media’s addictive, deceptive design practices. And I support real oversight of hyperscale AI data centers straining Florida’s grid and water, including usage disclosure and community input before they’re built.
Tech Regulation: As someone who builds tech that has a positive impact, I believe we need policies around tech that works for people, not exploits them.
Renewable Energy: Florida is the Sunshine State; we need policies to build solar energy infrastructure.
Medicare for All: Healthcare should be a right, not a luxury for people. We need affordable healthcare for all.
Housing Affordability: We need to encourage more mixed-use housing and walkable communities built on existing infrastructure.
One of the most important lessons she taught was to never yield to the temptation of hate, no matter the circumstances.
Adaptability, attention to detail, and intelligence matter for legislating well. An elected official has to navigate a shifting political landscape and world while understanding existing law and the coalition they're building with.
I was told I shouldn't run for U.S. Congress, that because of my age I should stick to running for local office. But I didn't see representation on the national level that looked like me, or representatives prioritizing the issues that are shaping my future.
It was there that I learned to lead with honesty, courtesy, integrity, self-control, perseverance, and indomitable spirit. It also gave me an early, close-up view of how hard teaching is, and how hard it is for everyday families to afford childcare in this country.
It's going to take serious campaign finance reform, and winning enough elections to remove politicians bought by corporate money regardless of party. This country has been taken hostage by the top 1%. Our laws put profits over people. We need to get back to passing laws that help people, not corporations.
Consensus matters more than compromise. Through consensus, we bring everyone to the table to actually solve our country's long-standing problems.
Progressives for Democracy in America
50501 Northeast Florida
Florida for Bernie (Grassroots Organization)
Mr. Beat (YouTuber and Educator)
Matthew Grocholoske - President of DPCF
Florida Young Democrats
Katie Chorbek - President of 50501 Vets
Florida LGBTQ+ Democratic Caucus
American People's Compact
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Campaign finance summary
Note: The finance data shown here comes from the disclosures required of candidates and parties. Depending on the election or state, this may represent only a portion of all the funds spent on their behalf. Satellite spending groups may or may not have expended funds related to the candidate or politician on whose page you are reading this disclaimer. Campaign finance data from elections may be incomplete. For elections to federal offices, complete data can be found at the FEC website. Click here for more on federal campaign finance law and here for more on state campaign finance law.
See also
2026 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on July 6, 2026
