Byron Donalds Wins Florida GOP Nomination for Governor

Primary elections held on August 18 and 19, 2026, across Florida, Alaska, Wyoming, and California established key matchups for the November general elections. In Florida, Byron Donalds won the Republican nomination for governor with the support of Donald Trump, positioning him to potentially become the state's first Black governor. He will face Democratic nominee David Jolly in November.

Florida's Democratic primary saw a significant upset as progressive state representative Angie Nixon defeated the heavily funded retired Army Lt. Col. Alexander Vindman for the U.S. Senate nomination. In congressional races, Representative Debbie Wasserman Schultz won her primary in a redrawn plurality-Black district, while Republican Representative Cory Mills was ousted by Ryan Elijah amid ethics probes and allegations of domestic abuse.

In Alaska, former congresswoman Mary Peltola led the nonpartisan U.S. Senate primary with 48% of the vote, followed by incumbent Republican Senator Dan S. Sullivan at 43%. The race was complicated by the candidacy of Dan J. Sullivan, a former teacher who shares the senator's name. Alaskan voters also overwhelmingly approved a ballot measure to reimpose campaign contribution limits.

Other results included Wyoming, where Republican Representative Harriet Hageman won her Senate nomination, but Trump-endorsed gubernatorial candidate Megan Degenfelder was defeated by Eric Barlow. In California, State Senator Aisha Wahab won a special election for the 14th Congressional District, becoming the first Afghan American elected to Congress.