Republican U.S. Rep. Byron Donalds has been projected to win Florida's gubernatorial race, defeating Democrat David Jolly and extending the Republican Party's decadeslong hold on the governor's mansion.
Donalds, who represents Southwest Florida in Congress and was endorsed by President Donald Trump, will succeed term-limited Republican Gov. Ron DeSantis following one of the most closely watched gubernatorial contests in the country.
The victory comes despite signs of a tightening race in the weeks leading up to Election Day, with recent polling showing Jolly trailing Donalds by just 4 to 6 percentage points, according to Newsweek.
Democrats have not won a Florida gubernatorial election since 1994, when Lawton Chiles secured his second term. Donalds' projected victory continues that streak while making him the state's first Black governor.
Donalds is a Republican U.S. representative from Southwest Florida. Born in Brooklyn, New York, he moved to Florida as a teenager and earned a bachelor's degree in finance and marketing from Florida State University. Before entering politics, he worked in the banking, finance and insurance industries.
He served two terms in the Florida House of Representatives from 2016 to 2020 before being elected to Congress in 2020. A prominent conservative and ally of President Trump, Donalds has served on the House Financial Services and Oversight and Accountability committees.
He lives in Naples with his wife, Erika, and their three sons.
Jolly is a former U.S. representative, attorney and fifth-generation Floridian living in Pinellas County with his wife and children. He represented Florida's 13th Congressional District from 2014 to 2017 after winning a special election to succeed longtime Republican Congressman Bill Young.
Originally elected as a Republican, Jolly later left the party, spent seven years as an independent and ultimately joined the Democratic Party in 2025.
He also worked as a political analyst for NBC and MSNBC. Jolly is a graduate of Emory University and George Mason University School of Law.
Check back here with Patch for local results as they're reported throughout the night.
Most Florida polling places were open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. EST on Election Day, while some counties in the Panhandle are open until 8 p.m. EST because they're in the Central Time Zone. Expect results to start being released at 8 p.m.
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