Senate President Mike Haridopolos, R-Merritt Island, unveiled his committee assignments Tuesday, assignments that will shape the course of Florida government for the next two years.

The Florida Senate’s political right turn was marked on its opening day by the occasional red light – with a dwindling number of Republican moderates voting ‘no’ on several veto overrides sought by leaders.

As the Senate readies for its special session on Tuesday, incoming Senate President Mike Haridopolos, R-Merritt Island, named committee and subcommittee chairs.

Republicans and Democrats cast ballots in 10 state Senate districts across Florida Tuesday. While some incumbents faced primary challenges, all of them prevailed. And look for some different faces in the Senate -- even if they have familiar names.

With eight years experience in the house and several years after that working as a lobbyist, many consider Sharon Merchant the "insider candidate" in the Senate District 27 Republican Primary. But Lizbeth Benacquisto is benefiting from ties to the inside too.

Lizbeth Benacquisto and Sharon Merchant are the Republican front-runners for the Senate District 27 primary election, but they have very different views on what it means to be Republican.