Trump supporter Byron Donalds won the Republican primary in Florida
Congressman Byron Donalds, who was endorsed by U.S. President Donald Trump, won the Republican Party primary in Florida. He will be the party’s nominee in the November gubernatorial election, in which a successor to Ron DeSantis will be chosen.
Donalds has represented southwest Florida in the U.S. House of Representatives since 2021. According to The Guardian, he beat out three Republican rivals, including Lieutenant Governor Jay Collins, who was appointed by DeSantis, former Florida House Speaker Paul Renner, and James Fishback.
Ron DeSantis did not endorse any candidate in this race. Trump, however, endorsed Donalds. On his website, the congressman’s campaign stated his intention to implement President Trump’s “Make America Great Again” agenda. Among the main themes of Donalds’ campaign were affordability, lowering property taxes, and reducing insurance costs.
For more breaking news, follow the UA.News Telegram channel.
The Democratic Party’s nominee was David Jolly—a former Republican congressman and lawyer who later served as an independent and switched party affiliation last year. He defeated five opponents, including State Assemblywoman Doty Joseph and former schoolteacher Dana Marie Foster. Jolly criticized Donalds for focusing, in his words, on non-existent problems rather than the day-to-day needs of Floridians.
The Florida gubernatorial election will take place in November as part of the U.S. midterm elections. The Guardian notes that no Democrat has won a Florida gubernatorial election since 1994, and the Democrats’ last victory in a statewide election in Florida was in 2018.
