Byron Donalds Leads Florida Republican Gubernatorial Primary Field

Florida voters cast ballots on August 18, 2026, in statewide primaries to select nominees for governor, U.S. Senate, and other offices. Byron Donalds, a U.S. Representative backed by Donald Trump and Senator Rick Scott, entered the race as the overwhelming Republican favorite. Donalds campaigned on a MAGA and fiscally conservative platform, focusing on reducing insurance costs, expanding the power grid via nuclear and natural gas, and studying the elimination of homestead property taxes.

Donalds faced a field of 11 Republicans, including Lieutenant Governor Jay Collins, former House Speaker Paul Renner, and investor James Fishback. While Collins positioned himself as an everyman underdog and Renner highlighted his legislative record, prediction markets and polls showed Donalds leading Collins by as much as 43 points. On the Democratic side, former Congressman David Jolly led a field of six candidates, campaigning on affordable housing and public education reform.

More than 1.9 million Floridians voted early or by mail. The election cycle also sparked a debate over Florida's closed-primary system, with the Florida Democratic Party considering opening its primaries to combat a registration gap, a move the Republican Party of Florida vowed to challenge legally. Simultaneously, a crowded Republican primary took place to fill the congressional seat vacated by Donalds, featuring several candidates facing accusations of carpetbagging due to lack of local ties.