On February 20, 2025, President Trump endorsed US Representative Byron Donalds for the governor of Florida in 2026.
Five days later, Byron Donalds announced his candidacy for the next governor of Florida.
Since February, the lone Republican to challenge Byron Donalds’s candidacy has been Surfside, FL mayor, Charles Burkett. With no national name recognition, Burkett has approximately 5,719 constituents in Surfside, FL, according to US Census Bureau data.
In other words, barring unforeseen circumstances, Burkett’s challenge to Donalds will remain a lost cause.
On the other hand, First Lady of Florida, Casey DeSantis, has the power to upend the Florida governor’s race by mounting a run, herself, in 2026.
According to The Hill, Casey DeSantis has long been mulling a run for Florida governor.
Despite this distinct possibility, however, recent Florida polling finds Donalds to be favored over Casey DeSantis, 44-25%.
With Donalds having secured President Trump’s endorsement, another prominent Florida Republican, former Congressman Matt Gaetz, may be wise to pursue other opportunities similar in magnitude to the Florida governor.
Evidently, Casey DeSantis and Matt Gaetz both have the political capital to force a closely-contested Republican Primary for Florida governor in 2026.
However, if these prominent Florida Republicans decide not to run for governor in 2026, then Donalds appears poised to be elected Florida’s next governor – with Democrat support in Florida hitting a new low.
At such a high probability of being elected the next Florida governor, Donalds recently granted a one-hour interview to Christian Broadcasting Network, in which he revealed, astoundingly, that he “gave his life to Christ in the parking lot of a Cracker Barrel.”
On May 7, Donalds told the Christian Broadcasting Network:
Working at a Florida Cracker Barrel at 21 years old, Donalds was serving a large table made up of a church group. Leaving the table, he went back to rolling silverware and then it happened.
“The Lord spoke to me,” Donalds recalls. “It was like, ‘Stop running from Me.’ And so, it just knocked me back. So I went out to find the table, and they were all gone, and I could see through the windows that they were getting on their bus. So I walked out. My manager’s like, ‘Where are you going?’ I need a second. I walk out there. The last lady’s getting on the bus, and she goes, ‘Yo, man, you okay?’ And I go, ‘No, ma’am, I’m not okay.?’ She goes, ‘what?’ And I go, ‘The Lord is telling me to stop running.’ I still get emotional about it. And so there was a little tree that was right there next to where their van was pulled up, and they all came pouring out the bus. I mean, they just came from a revival. So they’re like, ‘Oh, praise the Lord, we got another one!’ So they pour out of the bus, and they all pray over me, and I gave my life to Christ in the parking lot of a Cracker Barrel.”
After that, his life began to take off.
Would Donalds be a better governor of Florida than Casey DeSantis?
Read the full article here