Florida Republicans have chosen their gubernatorial candidate after Byron Donalds defeated a crowded field to win the primary Tuesday with 48 percent of the vote. With 99 percent of precincts reporting, Donalds secured 810,675 ballots, surpassing rival Lt. Gov. Jay Collins’s 25 percent share and former Florida House Speaker Paul Renner’s 9 percent. James Fishback earned 10 percent of the Republican field, while all other candidates received single-digit totals.
The victory marks Donalds as Florida’s first Black governor candidate in state history. His win comes despite a highly competitive primary featuring eleven Republicans, with Donalds defeating Collins by 383,888 votes and 23 percentage points—a margin large enough to dispel claims that the nomination was fragmented.
Meanwhile, Democrats selected David Jolly, a former Republican congressman who joined the party in 2025, as their gubernatorial nominee after four years of unsuccessful Democratic attempts to win the office following Florida’s term limits on Governor Ron DeSantis. Jolly captured 61 percent of Democratic votes with 761,674 ballots, far ahead of his nearest opponent at 15 percent.
Donalds positioned himself as a unifier for Florida Republicans, emphasizing affordability and economic growth while pledging tax relief, lower insurance costs, healthcare price transparency, and protections for the state’s business climate. His campaign draws on personal experiences as a former Florida House representative and U.S. Congressman from Southwest Florida, alongside his background in finance and insurance.
The November general election will determine whether Florida continues its conservative trajectory under Donalds or shifts toward Democratic leadership with Jolly—a candidate who previously represented Florida’s 13th Congressional District as a Republican before becoming an independent and formally joining the Democrats in 2025. With Donalds already receiving pledges of support from former rivals, the race now focuses on securing Florida’s future amid a state that has consistently rejected Democratic candidates for governor since its last Democrat-led election cycle.