Republican Byron Donalds Wins Florida Governor's Race Over David Jolly

Republican Rep. Byron Donalds has won Florida's governor's race, defeating Democrat David Jolly on Tuesday and positioning himself to become the state's first Black governor and the first Black Republican ever elected governor of any U.S. state.^[1]

The Fox News Decision Desk projected Donalds as the winner Tuesday evening, and NPR also called the race in his favor, solidifying GOP control of the governor's office as term-limited Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis leaves office.^[1][2] Donalds, a three-term congressman from southwest Florida and a top House ally of President Donald Trump, will now lead one of the nation's largest electoral battlegrounds.^[1]

Donalds' rise to the governorship was built on early and strong backing from Trump, who endorsed him in February 2025, even before Donalds formally entered the race.^[1] The congressman later used that support to boost his profile on the right, formally announcing his gubernatorial bid on Fox News' prime-time program "Hannity" and quickly becoming a favorite among conservative activists in Florida.^[1]

The pivotal moment in Donalds' path came in the August 2026 Republican primary, where he won nearly half the vote in a crowded field that included Lt. Gov. Jay Collins, former Florida House Speaker Paul Renner, and business executive James Fishback.^[1] That decisive victory cemented him as DeSantis' de facto successor in a state that has trended increasingly Republican in recent cycles and set up the general-election matchup with Jolly, a former Republican congressman who ran as a Democrat.

Donald Trump remained central to Donalds' political identity through much of the race, but the general-election strategy shifted late in the campaign as Trump's approval ratings fell.^[1] Fox News reported that Donalds' team quietly removed some references to Trump from his campaign website, an adjustment that suggested concern about alienating swing voters even as he continued to benefit from Trump's early backing and the state's broader Republican tilt.^[1]

As he prepares to succeed DeSantis, Donalds will inherit a state that has been a conservative policy laboratory on issues ranging from education and immigration enforcement to voting laws, and his victory ensures continuity of GOP leadership in Tallahassee even as it breaks racial and party barriers in governors' mansions nationwide.^[1] NPR noted the race as one of the marquee contests of the midterm cycle, underscoring Florida's continuing role as a national political bellwether.^[2]

1. Fox News
2. NPR