TALLAHASSEE, Fla. -- A Florida senator favored to win re-election is expected to run even though she now faces drug charges.

Mitch Caesar, Florida's Democratic Party chairman, told Channel 10 News that though he has not heard from Sen. Mandy Dawson, he does not expect her to remove herself from the ballot, and that is the only way she would not be up for re-election.

Dawson (pictured) turned herself in on Friday to face prescription drug charges. She is currently out on bond.

Police said Dawson dropped her prescription for the painkiller Lorcet 10 off at a Publix pharmacy. A call to her doctor confirmed she had changed the quantity on her prescription from 60 pills to 160, police say. Dawson has said that she suffers with migraine headaches and back problems. She said she was getting the pills for a planned trip out of the country.

Dawson is charged with fraud. A conviction carries a maximum sentence of five years behind bars.

A visit to Dawson's Boca Raton home on Monday found no one at home and a newspaper left on the front porch.

Dawson's attorney says that the whole thing is a misunderstanding, and he expects it to be resolved.