Rep. Byron Donalds stands at a podium.
Rep. Byron Donalds (R-FL) speaks alongside other members of Congress during a news conference in the U.S. Capitol on May 20, 2026, in Washington, DC. Credit: Photo by Heather Diehl/Getty Images)

Rep. Byron Donalds, a Trump-backed former state lawmaker who made his political name as a school choice champion, has won the Republican nomination to be Florida’s next governor, according to unofficial election results. 

The Associated Press called the race for Donalds, a three-term congressman from Naples, at 8 p.m. on Tuesday evening, immediately after the last polls closed. As of 9:30 p.m. with 95 percent of the votes counted, the returns showed Donalds carrying 47 percent of the vote, with Florida Lt. Gov. Jay Collins notching 25 percent, investor and far-right provocateur James Fishback pulling in 10 percent and former Florida House Speaker Paul Renner netting 8 percent.
Addressing supporters in Orlando, Donalds said he received calls from Fishback and Renner congratulating him on what Donalds called a “hard-fought victory.”
“Tonight the primary is over. Tonight we put aside our differences. Tonight we are one united Republican Party,” Donalds said.

From the jump, Donalds was the Republican favorite to succeed term-limited Gov. Ron DeSantis, who declined to endorse in the race. Donalds consistently led in polling and fundraising, far outstripping his competitors and pulling in a staggering haul, more than $110 million. 

Building on a reputation as a polished rising star in the GOP and a go-to cable news surrogate for President Donald Trump, Donalds took in millions from some of the richest people on the planet, who like the candidate and his wife, education entrepreneur Erika Donalds, envision a sweeping expansion of the state’s school choice landscape. 

Donalds faced headwinds, even among staunch Republican voters in an increasingly conservative state, for his evolving stance on artificial intelligence and the broadly unpopular data centers needed to power them. His competitors have skewered him for the millions of dollars spent for his campaign’s benefit by AI interests and his statements that Florida should embrace Big Tech and data center development – while insulating ratepayers from the costs of the energy-intensive operations. 

David Jolly won the Democratic nomination for Florida governor. Photo courtesy of the campaign.

Heading into November’s general election, Donalds will face off against the Democratic nominee, former Rep. David Jolly, who left the GOP in 2018 after fiercely criticizing Trump and the party the president made his own. Jolly has named as his running mate former Rep. Gwen Graham, daughter of the widely popular late Gov. Bob Graham.

Kate Payne is The Florida Trib’s state government reporter. She can be reached at kate.payne@floridatrib.org.

Kate Payne is The Florida Trib's state government reporter.

She’s spent her career in nonprofit newsrooms in Florida and Iowa and her reporting has run the gamut, from interviewing presidential candidates on the campaign trail to middle schoolers in the lunch line.

Kate has won awards for her political reporting, sound editing and feature writing and was named 2024 journalist of the year by the Florida chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.

Kate’s previous newsrooms include the Associated Press, Iowa Public Radio and WLRN Public Media in Miami. Her stories and photographs have been published by The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Christian Science Monitor, NPR and PBS, and her reporting on the death penalty has been cited in a filing at the U.S. Supreme Court.

You can reach Kate at kate.payne@floridatrib.org