Byron Donalds (L) and David Jolly. (Photos via each candidate’s Facebook)
Florida voters will pick either U.S. Byron Donalds or former Rep. David Jolly as the state’s next governor after both men won their primaries Tuesday.
Donalds took 48% of the vote in a crowded primary that included nine other Republicans. Jolly easily defeated five opponents in the Democratic primary, earning 61% of the vote.
The result was somewhat predictable, but the primary ended the early part of a campaign season that has been punctuated by some unusual side stories.
Both of the night’s primary winners jumped into the governor’s race last year but the contest took some unpredictable turns ahead of Tuesday’s primary.
Donalds posted about his victory on X shortly after 8 p.m. eastern time, after the polls closed in the western panhandle.
And in a victory speech from Orlando, Donalds later said Jolly represents “everything that folks hate about Washington, D.C. Liberal David Jolly is the change that Florida cannot afford,” Donalds said.
Some of the other Republicans included former House Speaker Paul Renner, Lt. Gov. Jay Collins, and investor James Fishback. None of them could get enough traction to mount a serious challenge to Donalds, who won the president’s endorsement, but never Gov. Ron DeSantis’.
DeSantis, who for a while touted First Lady Casey DeSantis as a potential gubernatorial nominee before the Hope Florida Foundation scandal, never endorsed any of the Republicans in the primary.
Collins finished in second place with more than 25% of the vote. DeSantis named him lieutenant governor in August 2025 but he did not become a Republican gubernatorial hopeful until earlier this year. Collins sold himself as someone who would continue DeSantis’ legacy but the governor never endorsed his second-in-command.
DeSantis also had a close working relationship Renner during his two years as House speaker but DeSantis initially called Renner’s run for governor “ill-advised.” DeSantis acknowledged earlier this month that Renner would make a “good” governor, but still there was no endorsement. Renner finished with 8.5% of the vote.
Fishback, who won slightly more than 10% of the vote, repeatedly insulted Donalds and called him a “slave” to donors.
Collins, meanwhile, filed suit seeking to get Fishback knocked off the ballot for not meeting eligibility requirements for governor. A state circuit judge tossed the lawsuit and let Fishback remain in the race.
Alleged liberal
There was less drama in the Democratic primary.
Jolly is a former Republican member of Congress who left the GOP after Trump was elected.
He switched to the Democratic Party last year and appeared on the path to his own competitive primary against Orange County Mayor Jerry Demings.
But Demings dropped out of the race after being diagnosed with cancer.
While Donalds has been attacking Jolly as a liberal, Jolly has had to defend some of his more conservative positions to Democrats.
For instance, Jolly does not want to eliminate Florida’s universal school voucher program. “I’m a Democrat who’s not going to stand up and tell you we’re going to do away with choice,” Jolly told members of Capital Tiger Bay Club. “Choice is here. Choice is here to stay. However, Florida families are being left behind by the current choice program.”
Jolly said last year that he uses the state vouchers to help offset costs for both of his children, who attend faith-based private school.
This story is courtesy of Florida Phoenix. You can read Watermark Out News’ interview with David Jolly here.
Florida Phoenix is a nonprofit news site, free of advertising and free to readers, covering state government and politics with a staff of five journalists located at the Florida Press Center in downtown Tallahassee. Florida Phoenix is part of States Newsroom, the nation’s largest state-focused nonprofit news organization.
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