Florida’s race for governor is officially on — and it pits one of President Donald Trump’s most prominent allies against a former Republican who switched sides.
U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds cruised to the Republican nomination Tuesday, while former Congressman David Jolly captured the Democratic primary, setting up a November battle to succeed term-limited Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Donalds, a Southwest Florida congressman first elected in 2020, emerged from a crowded GOP field that included Lt. Gov. Jay Collins. Trump endorsed Donalds before he even formally entered the race, giving the lawmaker an early boost in the fight for the nomination.
Now comes November.
Donalds is running on carrying the Trump agenda into Tallahassee, with a focus on immigration enforcement, lower taxes, deregulation, affordability and infrastructure.
Jolly offers voters a decidedly different political journey.
The former Tampa Bay-area congressman served in Washington as a Republican before leaving the GOP in 2018 amid his growing opposition to Trump. After a stint as an independent, Jolly joined the Democratic Party and is campaigning heavily on affordability, housing and education.
He now faces a daunting piece of Florida history.
The Sunshine State has shifted sharply toward Republicans over the past decade. No Democrat has won a statewide Florida election since Nikki Fried captured the agriculture commissioner’s race in 2018 — and Democrats haven’t won the governor’s mansion since Lawton Chiles in 1994.
For Donalds, the election could also make history: If elected, he would become Florida’s first Black governor.
For Jolly and Florida Democrats, the mission is bigger than one candidate: prove that a state once considered America’s ultimate political battleground can still be competitive.
Donalds vs. Jolly. Republican vs. Democrat. Trump ally vs. Trump critic.
Florida decides Nov. 3.
