Ron DeSantis Endorses Byron Donalds for Florida Governor

Governor Ron DeSantis officially endorsed U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds as his successor for Florida governor during the Republican Party of Florida Leadership Forum in Tampa on Tuesday. The endorsement marks a public reconciliation between the two men, who had not appeared together since July 2025 following a rift over Donalds' 2024 presidential endorsement of Donald Trump. DeSantis also endorsed the broader Republican statewide ticket, including Blaise Ingoglia, James Uthmeier, and Wilton Simpson.

Byron Donalds, who defeated Lieutenant Governor Jay Collins by more than 380,000 votes in the August primary, used the forum to attack his Democratic opponent, David Jolly. Donalds characterized Jolly's insurance plan as socialism and claimed Jolly would unwind the policies established during the DeSantis administration.

In response, the Jolly-Graham campaign asserted that Donalds represents more of the same and that Jolly is focused on lowering housing and healthcare costs. This friction follows a separate unity effort among Democrats in Miami Lakes, where Jolly explicitly rejected socialism despite pledging mutual support for the Democratic ticket, including U.S. Senate nominee Angie Nixon, a member of the Democratic Socialists of America.

Donalds will face Jolly in the gubernatorial race on November 3, while Nixon will challenge Republican Ashley Moody in a special election for the remainder of Marco Rubio's Senate term.